The new Wall ?

Recently retired Rahul Dravid was nicknamed ‘The Wall’ because of his elegant stroke play and his ability to rise up to the team’s cause in high pressure situations. He played like a wall against the bowlers in home and away conditions.

When Rahul Dravid retired, he left behind a legacy. The selectors were in a real fix to find a replacement for him. Rahul Dravid played at No. 3. In ODIs, there was Virat Kohli, another talented batsman, who held the fort for the No. 3 slot. However, Indian Test cricket was a tough problem. Mr. Dependable - V.V.S Laxman – announced his retirement even before selectors could recover from the shock of Dravid’s retirement. It was a grave problem as there was this India- New Zealand series coming up in two months’ time, and something had to be done fast. Then the selectors’ committee, headed by Krishnamachari Srikkanth, introduced somebody known in domestic cricket but not even heard of in international cricket. His name was Chateshwar Pujara.

The expectations from Pujara were tall and it appears that he has surpassed those expectations quite well. He debuted in the India- New Zealand series and made a score of 161 in the first innings itself. In the recently concluded first Test match against England, which India won by 9 wickets, Pujara made 206* in the first and 41* in the second innings.

Pujara is indeed a very talented batsman. But it may be too early to judge him as the next ‘Wall’. Even the original Wall had to perform consistently for 50 matches to be called by that name.
Nobody knows who will be the next Wall and will there be another Wall at all. But, as of now, Chateshwar Pujara stands a good chance of becoming the next Wall of Indian Cricket.

Laxman's Retirement - A Huge Blow to Indian Test Cricket

When the name VVS Laxman came to your mind, you would think of a classy and wristy batsman who played Test cricket. Yes he was a distinguished batsman in this format but he was also an icon for all those upcoming stars in this kind of competitive cricket. He was known for his wristy curving of the ball but he had the most essential element of Test cricket i.e. patience. He had a lot of patience. And he was the one to back on in dire straits. That is why he was nicknamed “Mr. Dependable.”

He is considered one of the greatest and most dependable batsmen of all times, alongside stars like Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid. He is second on the list of Indian batsmen to have managed well on abroad pitches, Rahul Dravid being the first on the list.

He recently retired just before the recently held India- New Zealand two Test series. When asked why he took this decision so quickly, he told “I listened to my Inner voice which told me to retire”, he says. He also told that he wasn’t able to co- operate with Captain Cool MS Dhoni. With Laxman retired, the Indian team is facing two blows- one is the retirement of Dravid and the other one is Laxman’s retirement. They may have a replacement for him in the Indian team, but in real, there will not be any replacement for VVS Laxman ever.