Watching two young and agile high-flying athletes compete with each other is one thing, but engrossing yourself in an absolute technical bout between two perfectionists gives you joy and satisfaction that is simply unbridled. During their playing days, Rahul Dravid and Inzamam-ul-Haq were two men who epitomized selflessness and were always ready to run through a brick wall for their country, but today, they face an uphill task of battling each other. We’ve seen these two absolute connoisseurs of the sport battle it out on a cricket field, but who would come out on top if they were thrown inside a ring - to fight to save their legacy? Without further ado, LET’S GET READY TO WITNESS THE RUMBLE!

Dravid - 8  Inzamam - 10

On the back of the sweet hit he managed to land towards the end of Round 1, Inzy utters the words “RUTHLESS AGGRESSION” and goes for a wild swing, but Dravid evades, swirls and lands a hook right on the jaw of the big man. The Indian’s average of 41.26 in the home conditions is five more than his counterpart, and so we’re back on level terms. 

Dravid - 10   Inzamam - 8

OH WE’VE GOT SOME MISUNDERSTANDING HERE!  Dravid runs to pump himself - and the crowd up - but Inzamam, who interpreted it as the Indian mocking his (lack of) running ability, is agitated by the gesture and absolutely MAULS the Indian. His average away from home of 56.89 is THIRTEEN more than Dravid’s 43.11 and leaves the latter grounded.

Dravid - 7   Inzamam - 10

Now THIS is what we’ve all been waiting for. No more soft grapples or light punches, the two are properly on it now. Dravid delivers two sucker punches to Inzy’s gut, but the Monster from Multan, almost unperturbed, gives the Wall a death stare and pegs him back with a bludgeoning uppercut. Inzy’s average of 35.89 in neutral venues once again scores him another mini-victory over Dravid, whose average sits at a miserable 34.04. 

Dravid - 8  Inzamam - 10

OH HOLD ON, WHERE DID THIS COME FROM? Inzy looks to have the measure of Dravid, cornering him towards the turnbuckle, but the Wall swivers out of trouble, pins Inzamam to the corner and BRUTALIZES him with FIVE punches right to the face. With his average of 46.46 in ICC tournaments, the Karnataka lad just showed Inzy, who in turn averages just 21.08, who the REAL boss is, when it comes to the big occasion! 

Dravid - 10  Inzamam - 7

Sometimes, even your best effort isn't good enough or, to put it in millennial slang, ‘it be like that sometimes’, and Dravid just realized it. Albeit a tad over-ambitious, Dravid does everything he can to try and knock Inzamam out in this round, but his strike rate of 71.24 is absolutely no match to the Pakistani brute’s 74.24. 

Dravid - 8  Inzamam - 10

Sometimes, putting two old men - both well past their prime - up against each other in a ring is not the greatest of ideas. We saw it in the Goldberg vs Undertaker encounter in Saudi Arabia last year and we’re seeing it again now. After three minutes of botched punches and blocks, Dravid’s conversion rate of 12.63 is ‘less worse’ than Inzamam’s 10.75. He will take it, nevertheless. 

Dravid - 10  Inzamam - 8

Did I seriously make the grave mistake of writing these two off? Well, scratch that! The two exchange vigorous blows from the very moment the bell goes off, making Round 7 look like a well-choreographed joke. The high-intensity round sees Dravid, with 47 fifties in winning causes, land a barrage of punches on Inzamam, but the big man from Multan, staggeringly, absorbs EVERYTHING to give not one, not two, but FIFTY FIVE punches in return. TAKE THAT!

Dravid - 9  Inzamam - 10

THIS IS INCREDIBLE!  I repeat, THIS. IS. INCREDIBLE.  The standard of fighting in this bout is so high that it’s putting the Rumble in the Jungle bout between Ali and Foreman to shame! Inzy throws punch after punch towards Dravid but NO, the Wall absorbs everything, removes his helmet and drains the sweat off his head and BAM, rocks his enemy with a startling rear hand hook. 7 hundreds in winning causes for Inzy ain’t enough, as Dravid goes one better with 8 to edge ahead in the encounter. 

Dravid - 10  Inzamam - 9

OH MY GOODNESS GRACIOUS ME! Are we witnessing Rahul Dravid or The Hulkamaniac at his peak? YET AGAIN Inzy throws everything he has to down the Indian, but Dravid, impenetrable and impregnable as ever, with blood dripping from his mouth, delivers a sucker punch to FLOOR Inzamam. With 22 fifty-plus scores in successful chases, he edges Inzamam by one, and the big man is absolutely devastated and shocked as the bell rings.

Dravid - 10  Inzamam - 9

Eleven rounds and 33 minutes into this absolutely excruciating bout, these two are STILL INSEPARABLE. After the lung-busting rounds 9 and 10, you thought the fight would ease off? Well joke’s on you, ‘cause it has just FIRED UP even more! The barrage of punches he took in the previous two rounds have taken a clear toll on Dravid, who’s average in H2H matches of 36.51 is dismissed by Inzamam’s figure of 43.69. Well, well, well, into the last round we go. 

Dravid - 8  Inzamam - 10

DING DING DING!  The final bell has rung, but NO, we don’t have a winner yet. Dravid’s average in ICC knockout matches of 36.28 gives him the edge over his counterpart, but it’s not enough to knock out his opponent as Inzamam’s 25.16 does enough to keep him in the bout. So, it all comes down to the judges’ decision now. The two men are standing at the corner leaning on the turnbuckle, with their energy bars in negative, anxiously awaiting the result. 

AND THE WINNER BY UNANIMOUS DECISION - RAHUL DRAVID

FINAL SCORE:  RAHUL DRAVID 109 - 108 INZAMAM-UL-HAQ

This bout was a poetic representation of Rahul Dravid’s career, wasn’t it? Fights hard, does all the dirty work and scrambles his way towards victory only for the limelight to be stolen by someone else. And today, it had to be Venkatesh Prasad and Aamir Sohail of all people. He wouldn’t mind it though, for at the end of the day, he achieved the primary goal - victory. That brings an end to the April 10 edition of Friday Fights, but make sure to join us next week for yet another highly enthralling and entertaining bout. See ya!