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'There are lessons to be learnt'

Hindustan Times | BySanjjeev Karan Samyal, London
Aug 23, 2011 01:41 AM IST

For many, this series had been Dravid vs England. He has defied the English bowlers, grossing 461 runs. Sanjjeev Karan Samyal writes. Men of the series

At the end of it all, so ruthless has been England's march to victory that every part of the Indian team lay crushed. Nothing exemplifies it better than Rahul Dravid. No team has been able to break his resolve when he's got into the zone, not even the greatest of them all -Steve Waugh's Australia.

Until his 16th season, only one of Dravid's 32 hundreds had come in a losing cause. He has refused to bow to the power of the rampaging England attack but at the end of the four-Test series, even the proud Indian's spirit lay crushed. He has scored three hundreds and all have ended in a losing cause.

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"I will have mixed feelings. A sense of satisfaction at the way I've played. But when you get a 100 and don't end up winning, it doesn't feel nice. I haven't experienced it too many times in my career," said Dravid, the only India batsman who has come out of the Test series with his reputation intact.

For many, this series had been Dravid vs England. He has defied the English bowlers, grossing 461 runs.

It has been frustrating for the batsman to give it his all and still see his team crumble. But Dravid defended the poor show as part of the game.

"It's not frustrating; I know they've put in the effort, but sometimes, the results haven't gone their way. I've had tough tours, but it's sad for us that collectively we've all had a tough tour. That hasn't happened to us for a long time where all the batsmen have failed. People do have bad tours, but this time we haven't clicked as a unit. No one's going out there trying not to succeed.

"We are a team that, from 2002, has seen quite a bit of success. There have been lessons to be learnt; we came up against a team that was really good, well drilled, at the top of their game, good skills, good fitness, and we were not up to scratch. It's a good learning experience," said Dravid, who scored a magnificent unbeaten 146 in the concluding Test.

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