Rahul Dravid doesn't need to put on his pads when he comes out to bat, that is the word of advice

he has received from the opposition camp. "He is so straight and negotiates almost every delivery

with his bat, why does he need pads at all," said an admiring Danish Kaneria, shaking his head in

part frustration and part admiration.

With two successive centuries and yet to be claimed by a bowler -- he was run out in the ongoing

Faisalabad Test -- in the series, Dravid's bat is getting broader and broader each time he gets out

to bat.

However, one is not sure if his bat is also getting heavier. "I only play with a 2.6 or 2.07 pound

heavy bat though in one-dayers I admit tend to carry slightly heavier bats," remarked Dravid in

a rare peep-in into his methods to the art of batting.

Interestingly, Dravid almost entirely relies on the ‘feel factor’ of the bat and doesn't have a specific

shape in the mind while choosing his piece of willow. "I just rely on the feel of the bat, how it feels in

the pick-up. Couple of grips are fine with me. I am also not much for the number of grains the wood

should have," he said.

Dravid is also not the kind of batsman who discards his bat in a hurry. "I usually hold on to

my bat till it breaks. Right through the season, two or four bats are enough for me."

No wonder, Kaneria feels everything about Dravid's batting is precise to the last point.

"I remember a defensive shot he played against Shoaib Akhtar. It was a pretty quick bouncing

delivery and Dravid, on the backfoot, still didn't push his bat ahead of him. Usually, batsmen tend

to stretch out their hands instinctively.

"When it happens it is pretty disappointing to a bowler. He gets the feeling that perhaps he is not

bowling quick enough," the leggie said.

However, Dravid is a little more careful when it comes to the selection of his gloves and other

accessories.

"I usually tend to wear inners inside my gloves. My hands are a little big so I go for specially

designed gloves. On the two fingers next to the thumb, I prefer extra protection since I have

been hit on them a few times."

Dravid also almost invariably puts on thigh pads inside his attire and puts it down to his

experiences in England. "It really hurts when you get hit in the thigh in the cold conditions in

England. Once I started to wear thigh pads, it soon became a habit. Now I use it all the time."

However one aspect of Dravid's cricket can still evoke the censure from the men who know their

game. Dravid has been involved in a run-out on 21 occasions. It is the third most by any player in

Test cricket after Allan Border (29) and Steve Waugh (27).

Dravid himself has to trudge his way back to the dressing room on nine of these occasions while

on 12 other occasions, his partners had been at the receiving end.