IPL is here to stay: Dravid

30th May 2008

The Bangalore Royal Challengers found form late in the DLF Indian Premier League (IPL). The Vijay Mallya-owned side started off badly, then pulled off a series of late victories but unfortunately lost their final game of the IPL against the Mumbai Indians on Wednesday.

At the post match conference, Bangalore Royal Challengers' captain Rahul Dravid talked about the success of the IPL and the valuable place of Test cricket in the scheme of things to come.

Dravid expressed remorse that his side hasn't fared well in the course of the event and he believed that the IPL is only going to get bigger and better.

Talking about the success of the IPL, the former India captain said, "The IPL has proved that its here to stay. The teams are going to have more time to prepare next year in terms of the grounds and facilities. I think a lot of the teams got things rushed into this year and didn't have enough time to prepare. It's going to get bigger and better next year."

He stated that the main reason why the tournament is going to be a bigger success in its second year was because players are going to have more time to prepare.

He then went on to state that the crowds one garners for Test matches and Twenty20 matches should not be compared as the two formats are very different.

"We've got to look to compete with the last Test match crowds and not mix it with Twenty20 as the two are very different," said Dravid.

India's batting mainstay also expressed his support for the longest format of the game saying, "You've got to ensure that Test cricket holds its place as it has sanctity and value which I hope will never ever be tampered with."

Rahul Dravid who captained the Bangalore Royal Challengers was one of the best batsmen for his side scoring 371 runs in 14 matches at a strike rate of 125 runs per ball.

"I enjoyed the season in terms of the runs. But as a player, you don't like to be on the losing side. I hope I'll be here next season and can put up a better show," concluded the Bangalore skipper.