Used to play 20-over cricket with Test mindset, learnt how to play T20 cricket from Yusuf Pathan: Rahul Dravid

Former Indian cricketer Rahul Dravid shared how his perception about batting in T20 cricket changed after watching Yusuf Pathan in the inaugural Indian Premier League in 2008. Yusuf ended up scoring 435 runs in 15 innings in IPL 2008 at a blistering strike rate of 179.01 in the title-winning campaign for Rajasthan Royals.

Dravid recollected how Yusuf played a quickfire knock early on in the tournament and did not look back from there. Dravid, who played for RR from 2011 to 2013, also stated that Yusuf did not go on the defensive, going against what Dravid had anticipated. 

"When I first played the IPL, one of the things I realised, and you know we [then Royal Challengers Bangalore] didn't have a very great year in the IPL. I was actually observing Yusuf Pathan bat. I remember early on in the tournament, he had played a fantastic innings. He smashed it and scored 50 or so in a very quick time. For the next two or three innings, he played the same way and he got out. I used to keep watching and think, 'Yusuf is going to play slowly now'. No, he kept playing like that. And then he played another brilliant innings," shared Dravid in a video on his YouTube channel.

Dravid mentioned that Yusuf's batting template changed the way Dravid used to feel about batting in the shortest format. The erstwhile batter highlighted that he used to apply the same approach while batting in Test cricket before he analysed Yusuf's style of playing.  

"Through the course of 13-14 innings in the IPL, he might've succeeded only three or four times, but he played three or four really good impactful innings. It was sort of watching him I actually learned that that is the mindset you need to play T20 cricket with. I had been playing T20 cricket with the same mindset we would play Test cricket with, where you put a big value on your wicket because your team needs to bat 120 overs. In this case, only 11 people need to bat 20 overs," he added.

Yusuf, who won the Player of the Match for his stellar all-round role in the final of IPL 2008, was a crucial cog in the wheel of RR. Throughout the tournament, he scored four fifties and scored 43 fours and 25 sixes over the course of 15 innings.