Rahul 'Perfect' Dravid (-worma)

That's what I felt, after reading this lengthy cricinfo interview of RD. In fact, the first proper one since his annointment. As we know him, he's diplomatic in parts, firm and clear in others, and sometimes absolutely and openly honest(no I don't mean modest). Consider this

There's been a suggestion that you said you would not accept the captaincy unless it was given to you over a period of time, and that you made this clear to the board president ...
Absolutely not. I don't think there's any truth to that. The board president never spoke to me before I was appointed captain and I had no such conversation.

And do remember, it was Anand Vasu(the interviewer here) who had suggested in one of his earlier piece that RD would not have accepted a filler role. And, going by the emphatic manner in which RD replied to this one, I don't think he was being dipomatic.

Then, in this portion, what caught my attention was that he went to the extent of naming all the members of the support staff.

You put a lot of stress personally on preparation before a game. How has the support staff [coach, Frazer etc] helped make a difference with reference to this in the team context?
They have helped a lot. Greg and Ian have brought in some new ideas. They work really hard on preparing the guys to play a game of cricket and once we reach the field it is my team and I lead the boys. Greg and Ian have prepared the team brilliantly. John [Gloster] and Greg [King] have played their part well as physio and trainer. Ramki as analyst, and a good manager in the Wing Commander [M Baladitya] has helped immensely. It's a coming together of good people. It's an environment where we're challenging each other constantly. That is helping. I'm enjoying the environment and I'm sure the rest of the boys in the squad are enjoying the environment.

And this portion struck me because it resonated with the thought I sometimes have had, in recent times, that all this talk of process over results is good(probably a bit overplayed in the media) but is it getting highlighted only because the results are good? And what when they aren't? Here's what he says

You've emphasised a lot on processes and not just on results. But assuming the results are not going your way, does the team have the maturity to still believe it is the processes, not the results, that are important?
Not always. At the end of the day we are playing in a sport where results are everything. But that's where you are going to be tested. Are you willing to back yourselves when it's not going well? There are times when it is not going to go well. When things are not going well you have to look to change things and be a bit proactive about it. Not everyone is going to have the patience with us when things are not going well, but we must have that patience as a group. We must have some patience with some of the boys when things don't go so well with them.

And about handling the new roles that come with captaincy, and judging himself on that, here's what he says, with my emphasis on some portions (where again, I felt honest rather than modest opinon coming across)

Being captain of India is not just about cricket. You have to deal with officials, endless press conferences ...
You have to deal with it. That comes with the terrain. I was lucky that I was vice-captain for four years and I learnt how the system worked. I got a lot from sitting back and seeing how things worked but it's early days yet. I have not led the side enough to tell you what it's like. Irrespective of whether the team wins or loses, it is too early for me, or others, to form an opinion on what sort of captain I am. I have led the side in just 20-odd games and that is not enough experience given the amount of cricket we play these days.