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Along with Tendulkar we changed a few things in Indian cricket: Dravid

Sachin Tendulkar has maintained a clean image despite so much happening around him. Former India skipper and long-time teammate Rahul Dravid says the manner in which the master batsman handled the adulation and stayed away from controversy is ‘incredible’.

"It's incredible the way Sachin has managed a lot that happened around him. With so much going on around him, with so much happening around him, he never said in his career that 'I want to do other things, I should move on or it's too hard'. His love of the game stood out above all, he's been able to maintain that balance," said Dravid.

Speaking about their ability to steer clear of controversy, Dravid said they changed a lot of things in Indian cricket without making a hue and cry about it.

"Depends how you read it; a lot of people have said that staying of controversy is easy, if you don't take a stand and a lot of things. We have taken a stand where we felt it needed to be. When we felt that it could make a difference. A lot of times, without needing to shout or scream, we changed a few things in the Indian cricket with the help of others...in lot of ways, we got the job done," Dravid told CNN-IBN on Sunday.

Dravid also said he never saw Tendulkar getting publicly angry.

"I have never seen him getting publicly angry, never seen him getting upset in a public situation. In the dressing room, he might be upset of some wrong decision but never publicly," he said.

'Cricket always remained his primary focus and he never shifted from that'

Asked about his abrupt declaration in the Multan Test of 2004 series which left Tendulkar stranded only six runs short of a double century, Dravid said, "We had sorted it out after having a conversation with each other. It's something personal between us and we would like to keep it that way. We continued respecting each other after that and it's still that way."

Dravid, who spent more time with Tendulkar on the cricket field and shared numerous partnerships with him in the middle, said the batting legend will miss the camaraderie he shared with his colleagues and the dressing room environment.

"He will miss the bonding that you get in a team, the camaraderie. He will miss that focus, that goal, striving for something, excelling in it and try to become better at it. When I tried to do something out of cricket after my retirement, I found out that I am not good at them."

Dravid said Tendulkar always looked at getting the best out of his talent.

"Cricket always remained his primary focus, he never shifted from his primary focus," he said.