Ricky Ponting, Kumar Sangakkara and Rahul Dravid - An era marked by elegance

As Harsha Bhogle, one of the most respected cricket commentator's worldwide, once famously said, "Talent can only take you till 15 - 20 Test matches, but hard work is the only trait that can take you to 100 Tests." There are very few players who are entitled to be called as the "Legends Of The Game". Not because for the greatness they possess - it is purely because they earned every letter of so-called "Legend" with their sheer determination and hard work.

Very often, we tend to fall in the trap by looking at a batsman purely for his tendency to play the moving ball. The pity, however, is that most of the modern-day batsmen are weighed by numbers. Of course, numbers do speak a lot, but they aren't the appropriate yardstick to determine how tough and bloody minded a batsman is. There is cricket, there is batting, there is hard work, sweat and toil and then there are Ricky Thomas Ponting, Kumar Chokshanada Sangakkara and Rahul Sharad Dravid.

All three of them had their own style of approach towards the game and truly, each one among them is a quintessence of professionalism and sportsmanship. In the year 2000, Sanga quietly entered the arena with a cheeky grin and he gave us an impression of a next-door-boy. A year later, when he amassed 98 at Centurion facing Pollock, Donald, Ntini and Kallis - So, that tells us some story about the Matale lad. He missed his century by a mere 2 runs and he must have been absolutely gutted.

Remember, he scored 98 on a pitch that swung and seamed viciously where every other Sri Lankan batsman (Atapattu, Jayasuriya, Aravinda de Silva and Jayawardene) failed to make any meaningful runs. It took quite a while to register his maiden Test hundred, but since then, he never looked back. What we rejoice now in the name of class and quality is all Kumar has strived for and yes--excellence is something he achieved in the erstwhile decade. When he ends his cricketing career, which is just by a nigh distance, he will retire as the best Sri Lankan batsman ever to have played the gentlemen game.

Rahul Dravid - There is a reason why people all over the world call him the "Wall of Indian Cricket". Not for his talent, not for his batting average, not because he had a dream debut at Lord's. Any younger generation kids, who had watched Dravid play will tell you that his career is graced by steel and unrelenting hard work. If his patience is something that stands out, a pristine frame of mind and never-give-up attitude were his strengths. When India notched up a historic win against the mighty Aussies at the Eden Gardens, his innings of 180 runs was as vital as Laxman's epic 281. He took the captaincy when Indian team was surrounded by a series of controversies. He accepted the responsibility of being a wicket-keeper for a considerable period of time under Ganguly's reign.

The Bengaluru boy, however, never complained and carried on the same inspiration and motivation till the last day he held the bat. Rahul Dravid is once in a generation player and to reach half of what he has achieved is a mammoth task for any modern cricketer. Numbers do speak a lot and Kumar Sangakkara is the quickest batsman to reach 11,000 Test runs. While Rahul Dravid and Ricky Ponting average fairly less than Sanga does, one has to consider the amount of runs scored at home and in away conditions respectively.

Dravid and Ponting hold better away averages, but Kumar is a force to reckon in home conditions. 

Phew! It has to be said, Ricky Ponting, for what all he had to deal with the pressure of being skipper and playing Ashes every two years, he has to be the best number three batsman in comparison to Dravid and Sanga. He always played the game "the hard way" and his record as a captain and a player justify the same verdict. Ricky had almost every milestone ticked throughout his cricketing career. Lest we forget how hard a competitor he is in and out of the cricketing field.

Sometimes, numbers do speak volumes about a player but at the end, it all comes down to what they have achieved individually and how vital is their role in sustaining team's success. Ricky Ponting has done that and no other individual/captain can come anywhere close to his records.Ricky Thomas Ponting, with the rare virtues of skill, defence, self-belief and fitness, was one of the finest number three batsman of his time.