'Set me up, gave me confidence for rest of my career' - Rahul Dravid recalls maiden Test ton in Johannesburg

Rahul Dravid recalled his maiden Test century on the eve of India’s Johannesburg Test against South Africa, which came at the same venue many moons back, in January 1997, in what was Dravid’s ninth Test as an India player.

A quarter of a century later, Dravid, now 48, returns to the venue as the team’s head coach, as the Virat Kohli-led unit takes on Dean Elgar and Co. in the second Test of the three-Test series, which visitors lead 1-0 after a comprehensive 113-run win in the Boxing Day Test in Centurion’s SuperSport Park last week.

Dravid recalled how rain played spoilsport as India failed to clinch the 1997 affair despite his Player of the Match 362-ball 148, which set the foundation of India’s first-innings tally of 410. Much like his maiden triple-digit effort, pacer Javgal Srinath’s five-wicket haul that helped India wrap the Proteas for 321 also went in vain.

Dravid followed his first-innings show with a stodgy 81 off 146, with India setting the hosts an unlikely 356 for the victory. India had South Africa reduced to 228/8 but were denied by the weather on the final day to finish the series 0-2 as they had come after losses in Durban and Cape Town.

“I remember it raining and not us being able to win the game. That I remember well. It was nice personally in some ways to score the first Test hundred as an international player. It makes you feel you belong and achieved at that level,” Dravid said on the eve of the Johannesburg Test.

“On a personal level, that was really nice. In a lot of ways, it sort of set me up and gave me confidence for the rest of my career. But yes, the disappointment was it was raining on Day 4 and Day 5 and we didn’t have enough overs to win a Test match which we probably deserved. People like Srinath were there but we didn’t have the depth that we have right now. Still, we came close to really winning a Test match,” he said.

Winning in Johannesburg in 2006 a really lovely memory: Rahul Dravid 

Dravid, who played 11 of his 164 Tests in South Africa and scored 624 runs at 29.71 in 22 innings in the country, also recounted the 2006 Johannesburg affair, which India won by 123 runs under him to register their maiden victory in the land of the Proteas. Even though Dravid did not have much success with the bat in that encounter – he scored 32 and 1 – he termed the Test triumph as a “lovely memory”.

“As far as what it means personally, it’s very different as a player and as a captain, having obviously won here when I led the team in 2006-07. That was a really lovely memory as well. You know, as a coach, our role is to support and help the team and it’s really their success. I know it would mean a lot to the group of guys to be able to win a Test match here,” he said.

Quite remarkably, India have never lost a Test in Johannesburg, having drawn three and won two.