It was really painful and boring to watch Rahul Dravid's struggle to find form in the first innings of the Mohali Test Match. Though he scored 136, he consumed whopping 328 deliveries making it the most boring test match innings I have seen in recent times. If not for the quick runs that came in the form of edges when he was nearing hundred, it would have taken him another full day to get to the century. These edges and a few attempted shots towards the end of his innings ensured that he had a respectable strike rate of 41.26 by the time he finished his innings. The commentators were yelling that Rahul needs to spend lot of time at the crease. Yeah! he listened to their advice and followed it strictly and in the process forgot to score runs. I was lucky that our cable operator suddenly became generous to give us Star Cricket channel and I happily watched the Australia and South Africa battle. 

Rahul Dravid, no doubt, is a great cricketer. Perhaps better than Sachin Tendulkar in terms of scoring runs when it matters most. Technically correct and has perfect temperament to play at the highest level. But it is also important for him to assess his present form, his contribution to the team and the bench strength that India has. Anil Kumble knew that his fitness wouldn't allow him to play further and Saurav Ganguly was aware that he would always be under the scanner, especially after he relinquished captaincy. For them retiring when in decent form was the best possible option to avoid putting pressure on themselves and the young players.

One cannot compare Rahul Dravid with Sachin Tendular, who has the liberty to play matches that he wishes. While Tendulkar never has been in such a bad form even in the worst of his dreams, Rahul has been going through the roughest patch over the last one year, which may impact his career average.

Already, Rahul is sidelined from the one-day cricket team and hasn't been very effective in the glamorous T20 format. As said, there are a few events or incidents that signal the coming of  an end of something. And I think Rahul's form which has eluded him during the past one year is one such sign.

I might have been a bit harsh in my first para, but I don't want to see Rahul being forced to sit out of the team. Isn't it time to reconsider your decision to continue playing Rahul?