Why did Team India coach Rahul Dravid play for Scotland in 2003?

Rahul Dravid, the current Head Coach of Team India, is one of the most well-regarded cricketers of his generation. Between 1996 and 2012, he represented India in all three formats, making over 500 appearances for the country. Most people are unaware, however, that Dravid also played for the Scotland national cricket team in the English domestic one-day league in 2003. Cricket Scotland went nostalgic on Thursday, November 18, sharing a photo of Dravid in Scotland colours to commemorate his brief time with the team.

Why Dravid played for Scotland? 

According to Wisden, a group of NRIs or Non-Residential Indians, who were living in Scotland at the time, raised around £45,000 through charity dinners and other events to fund Dravid's stay at The Grange. Dravid was in top form at the time and was averaging around 92 in Tests for India. Dravid played a total of 12 matches for Scotland, which included 11 one-dayers and one tour game against Pakistan. Dravid's brief stay in Scotland ended with his team losing 11 out of the 12 matches they played in the one-day tournament. 

Dravid's run with the Scottish Saltires

Dravid could manage just 25 runs in his first match for the Saltires and he was dismissed for a second-ball duck in his second game against the touring Pakistan side. However, the newly-married Karnataka batter made a strong comeback in the third match against Somerset, where he scored a magnificent 120 runs off just 97 balls. Dravid went on to score two centuries and posted two double-digit scores of more than 50 runs. The right-handed batter finished the 11-game tournament with 600 runs, which he amassed at an average of 66.66. 

Interesting trivia

Scottish captain Kyle Coetzer, who lead the side in the recently-concluded T20 World Cup, was part of the team in 2003 that included India legend Rahul Dravid. Coetzer was only 19-years-old at the time. Coetzer recently recalled Dravid's stay with the Scottish national team and said he still remembers how he and the former India captain were involved in a mix-up that eventually cost his wicket as he was dismissed run-out. Dravid went on to score a century in the match. Coetzer shared the anecdote at a pre-match press conference ahead of Scotland's clash against India in the T20 World Cup. 

Image: ScotlandCricket/Twitter