'I might not always see success but it's okay to fail sometimes'

Source: DNA India     Date: October 15, 2005

Q. How difficult is it to be Rahul Dravid, to live up to that good boy image?
A. It's not difficult because I don't try and live up to any image, I genuinely enjoy my cricket and portray it as such. While I do understand that being a sportsman and more pertinently, being a sportsman in a sport like cricket in India, with its hugely passionate following, brings with it certain responsibilities that you try and live up to, I don't think I try and live up to any other image simply because that image has been created by others. I do not have a cultivated persona. I am what I am.

Q. So there's no pressure on you to be a certain way, a larger-than-life persona?
A. I don't feel that pressure. See, cricket's a bit different from other sports and professions that way. The sport is played day after day and you're judged on your performance day after day. It's constantly changing. You get used to that change. It's different from, say, being a movie star or any other performer, where fans have a huge influence on the way you're seen. For them, having a larger-than-life persona is essential. For cricketers, it's a little easier. People are used to seeing different shades of us. Our fallabilities are evident on television. Shades of a hero are different, in the end, he always has to triumph. We lose games, people see that. We lose form, they see that. They accept that we can fail also. We have that advantage.

Q. Changing track, what does it take for a shy boy to become comfortable in front of the camera? Did you feel silly?
A. Actually, I still don't know if I'm that comfortable in front of the camera. It's just that I'm more used to it than I was. I think the first ad I did was the Pepsi one and it was very strange for me. I was new to the whole thing, very nervous and just feeling really odd. I had done no acting in school, I wasn't the type who'd jump up onto the school stage and make a speech, that wasn't me. But then, with time, I've got used to it. I've learnt from some of the very interesting people I've met while doing ads. But I'm still not wholly comfortable. Sometimes, I need a day or two of rest in between to get something right. What makes it easier is knowing I'm there not because of my face, but because of my cricket.

Q. Well, a lot of people think you have a very nice-looking face!
A. (Laughs uncertainly) What I was trying to say is that if they wanted just a face, they would get a model. I am there only because of cricket. I should never forget that. Cricket is first and foremost.

Q. Talking of faces, was it difficult in your early days, getting used to being a pin-up boy for thousands of women? Did you have adjustment problems?
A. I've had many good friends who are women and as for others, other than the odd embarrassing incident or so, it's been okay. You learn to see all this as an extension of the popularity of cricket. (Salim) Durrani, (MAK) Pataudi, (Ravi) Shastri, they've all seen it. If you're a young and successful cricketer, you get that attention. So, some of the younger boys today, they're getting all that and more.

Q. And your background helped?
A. Yes, what made it easier for me was that my parents were very balanced about it. That really helped. I was never treated differently at home because I was a cricketer or later, because of my success in the game. Either my family or friends through school and college. They really helped me stay grounded. Eventually, you realise that while it's nice to have attention, you move on past it. It's a phase. (Laughs) Now everyone calls me Rahul bhaiya anyway!

Q. Has marriage also changed things?
A. It's been an experience. We've been married for the last couple of years and it's been very nice. Vijeeta is a professional in her own right, a surgeon, and she's taken time off, given it a bit of a break to be with me, something that I really appreciated. We've travelled around the world together, seen many things and that's really helped in the understanding. It was a completely new experience obviously and very, very different from being single and travelling with the guys. But it's been very nicely different.

Q. Who are your icons on the field?
A. I grew up in an era where Gavaskar, Vishwanath and then Kapil Dev dominated, where they were the heroes for anyone who followed cricket. Over the years, I've looked at other achievers in other countries and sports and tried to learn from their experiences. Of my own contemporaries, I've looked at and admired Steve Waugh, Sachin, Anil, seen the effort they put into everything, tried to learn from them also.

Q. How did being out of the team make you stronger?
A. In 1998, once I was dropped, I was so disappointed that I just worked that much harder. Those were tough circumstances at first but one day, after it struck me that nothing had changed because of my being out of the Indian team, things fell into place. The sun still came up, the world went on, my life still went on. It wasn't over. Right through my career, I've remembered that. I might not always see success but it's okay to fail sometimes. I can deal with it. There's more to life than just cricket.

Q. That brings us to an important question, have you thought of life after cricket?
A. I haven't really decided anything comprehensively. I'd like to play as long as I'm enjoying the game. I know it's a cliché and #233;d answer but it's true. I have to enjoy what I'm doing. I'm not setting myself a target of years, matches, runs, I'm just enjoying each day. Sometimes, the decision of when to move on is yours, sometimes it's made by the selectors. That's life. Either I'll know one day or the selectors will know. There are a few things I've thought of, some of which will keep me involved with the game at some level but these are still hazy. I want to explore different avenues, all that life has to offer. Right now, I'm single-mindedly focusing on the game. There's time for everything else later.