Why Rahul Dravid Played 12 Matches For Scotland After 2003 ODI World Cup?

In cricket, there have been a few occasions where players have represented two countries at international level. It has mainly happened when they realise they won’t get much opportunity to play for the country they belong to. There is another set of players who have opt to move to another country because of personal reasons and play for them.

But nowadays, with the advent of T20 leagues around the world, cricketers are preferring franchise cricket over international cricket. With these leagues offering rich monetary rewards, players sometimes opt to choose league cricket over national duty in the modern era. Recently, Joe Burns moved to Italy from Australia to play for their national side and is all set to captain the side after he became eligible to play for Italy through his maternal grandparents, who were originally from Calabria.

However, there is a rare instance when one of the game’s stalwarts played for a different country despite being a mainstay and a key player in the team. Former India skipper and head coach Rahul Dravid, who is widely revered as one of the finest cricketers of his era, had a unique experience playing for the Scotland national cricket team.

You may not encounter incidents where Indian players don the jersey for another nation. Throughout the period from 1996 to 2012, Dravid proudly represented India in all three formats, accumulating over 500 appearances and scoring over 20,000 runs for the Men in Blue. In his 16-year career, he got a chance to play for Scotland and had a 12-match stint with the Scottish team including a tour game against a visiting Pakistan team in 2003, following the conclusion of the 2003 ODI World Cup.

Why Rahul Dravid Played 12 Matches For Scotland After 2003 ODI World Cup dravid played for which country in 2003 (Getty)

How did Rahul Dravid play for Scotland?

According to Wisden, a group of Non-Residential Indians (NRIs) who were residing in Scotland raised approximately £45,000 through charity dinners and other events to support Rahul Dravid during his stay at The Grange.

Why Rahul Dravid Played 12 Matches For Scotland After 2003 ODI World Cup dravid played for which country in 2003 (Getty)

This came at a time when Dravid was in exceptional form, having a staggering average of above 60 in Tests for India. However, he didn’t get the perfect start to stint as he managed to score 25 in his first game in the National Cricket League, against Hampshire and then made a first-ball duck in a tour game against Pakistan.

However, he came back stronger as he always does and unleashed a majestic 120 not out off 97 balls against Somerset. In then fell on six against Middlesex, but then followed up it with another unbeaten century against Nottinghamshire, hitting 14 fours and four sixes. Dravid’s performance continued to shine as he recorded two additional 50+ scores in the 11-game tournament. In total, the right-handed batter accumulated 600 runs at an outstanding average of 66.66.

However, his happiness was relatively short-lived, as the team faced considerable challenges, suffering defeats in 11 out of the 12 matches played during the one-day tournament.