Watch: In an India-Pakistan ODI in 2006, captain Rahul Dravid and Suresh Raina combined to shrewdly plan Kamran Akmal’s dismissal.

Dravid led India in 79 matches, most of which coincided with Greg Chappell’s controversial tenure as the team’s coach. While there were many lows, the side also enjoyed sustained one-day success through much of his stint, including a streak of 17 consecutive wins while chasing.

Widely known for his cricketing acumen, Dravid was at the centre of a brilliant masterplan that saw the Indian team plan and execute the dismissal of Akmal during the Multan ODI of 2006.

With Pakistan on 15-0, Dravid decided to take one of the two slips off, asking Raina to position himself at short point when opener Akmal was on strike. The wicketkeeper-batsman, known for his belligerent off-side play, now had a packed outside field with players at backward point, short point, cover and mid-off.

“This (short point) position makes a lot of sense,” said Ramiz Raja on air, “because he [Akmal] likes to go hard at the ball in that direction, and they expect him to play uppishly”.

Irfan Pathan then delivered a length ball wide of the off stump, almost inviting Akmal to have a go at it. The batsman obliged with a full-blooded hack on the off-side, hoping to clear the in-field. But he couldn’t get past Raina, stationed exactly for that shot, who plucked a sharp catch.

Years later, he spoke about the brilliance of the skipper in formulating the plan.

“There was a rule at that time to keep catching fielders in the 15 yards,” Raina said in 2020. “So Rahul bhai asked me will you stand at point? I said ‘yes please tell me where to stand’. He said ‘Lean forward and be ready to take a catch.’”

“The thing that impressed me most was that Rahul bhai knew that a catch might come there and it came in the next delivery,” Raina added.

Watch the brilliant catch here:

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