“All this going around is not aggression. If you want to see aggression on the cricket field, look into Rahul Dravid’s eyes,” said Matthew Hayden.

Dogged. Determined. Steely. A team-player par excellence. Rahul Dravid embodies some of the best virtues of cricket in an age when the “spirit of the game” has been watered down to a tired old cliché.

But above all, Rahul Dravid represents cricket at its very best. For those of an impressionable age, he is the perfect introduction to cricket. And that is why the Board of Control for Cricket in India should be lauded for persuading Dravid to coach the India Under-19 and A teams.

Playing cricket…the right way

What would an aspiring young cricketer be likely to see if they switch on the TV nowadays?

For starters, they’d see players mouthing off at each other as if it’s their birthright. Nor would the umpires be spared, getting their own share of tongue lashing. If they’re lucky, they might even see players throwing their bats at one another or players elbowing each other out of their way.

You wouldn’t blame them for thinking that that’s how cricket is played nowadays. All bluster and bravado. Telling opponents to “prepare for a broken arm”. No place for subtleties or decency.

And that is exactly why our youngsters need Dravid right now much more than he needs them.

When a tough Aussie like Hayden, not exactly renowned for his niceness, makes a statement like that, it’s significant. It’s a reminder that aggression isn’t just about the words you utter or the number of obscenities you hurl at the opponent. It’s about sticking in there, believing in yourself, sticking to your guts, even if nothing’s going your way.

Rahul Dravid embodied that aggression. He wouldn’t utter a word to an opponent. There was never even a shriek of rage from him. Throughout his entire career, he was unflappable, solid. But when it came to his game, he fought fire with fire. They threw everything they could at him. And he returned it all. Never in anger, but always with that quiet elegance.

And it’s exactly for those same values that he’s a godsend for our U-19 and A teams.

Dravid is the best mentor for India’s next generation

With the IPL, there’s been an explosion of young, cricketing talent. We have some great young players coming through – the likes of Sanju Samson, Shreyas Iyer, Unmukt Chand, Karun Nair, for example. But the worry with these talents has been consistency.

Brought up on a diet of T20 and IPL, there’s every chance that their game has become too attuned to instant cricket, so much so that it’s become difficult to snap out of it. Batsmen swipe across the line so regularly that it’s become a force of habit. Fast bowlers have to bowl so many variations that when it comes to plain old red ball cricket, they tend to spray it all over the place.

That’s what Dravid will be looking to correct. No one better than him understands the value of playing cricket for India and this is what he will probably communicate to the lads. “All this T20 and IPL is great,” you can imagine him saying. “Enjoy it. Have fun. But don’t lose focus on the goal ahead. That’s the India cap.”

There’s also the part about mental toughness. We’ve seen some of our most talented players lose the plot overseas, unable to cope with the alien conditions. That’s where mental toughness comes in and when it comes to questions of mental toughness, Dravid reigns head and shoulders over anyone else. The prospect of Dravid talking about mental toughness to the players, maybe inspiring then with his own experiences (that 233 at Adelaide or that 180 at Kolkata) is a thrilling one.

The focus now has to be on ensuring that our U-19 cricketers are mentally prepared to step up to the biggest platform, similar to the way Steven Smith for Australia arrived on the international stage and fitted in like he’d been there his entire life.

With “The Wall” at the helm, India’s cricketing future just became stronger. Much stronger.

This article originally appeared on Scroll.in and has been reproduced with permission.