Here's what cricinfo said about Dravid, and Ponting...
Rahul Dravid, a cricketer who seamlessly blends an old-world classicism with a new-age professionalism, is the best No. 3 batsman to play for India - and might even be considered one of the best ever by the time his career is done. He already averages around 60 at that position, more than any regular No. 3 batsman in the game's history, barring Don Bradman. Unusually for an Indian batsman, he also averages more overseas - around 60, again - than at home. But impressive as his statistics are, they cannot represent the extent of his importance to India, or the beauty of his batsmanship.
When Dravid began playing Test cricket, he was quickly stereotyped as a technically correct player capable of stonewalling against the best attacks - his early nickname was `The Wall' - but of little else. As the years went by, though, Dravid, a sincere batsman who brought humility and a deep intelligence to his study of the game, grew in stature, finally reaching full blossom under Sourav Ganguly's captaincy. As a New India emerged, so did a new Dravid: first, he put on the wicketkeeping gloves in one-dayers, and transformed himself into an astute finisher in the middle-order; then, he strung together a series of awe-inspiring performances in Test matches, as India crept closer and closer to their quest of an overseas series win.
Dravid's golden phase began, arguably, in Kolkata 2001, with a supporting act, when he made 180 to supplement VVS Laxman's classic effort of 281 against Australia. But from then on, Dravid became India's most valuable player, saving them Tests at Port Elizabeth, Georgetown and Trent Bridge, winning them Tests at Headlingley, Adelaide, Kandy and Rawalpindi. At one point during this run, he carved up four centuries in successive innings, and hit four double-centuries in the space of 15 Tests, including in historic away-wins at Adelaide and Rawalpindi. As India finished off the 2004 Pakistan tour on a winning note, on the back of Dravid's epic 270, his average crept past Sachin Tendulkar's - and it seemed no aberration.
Dravid's amazing run was no triumph of substance over style, though, for he has plenty of both. A classical strokeplayer who plays every shot in the book, he often outscores team-mates like Tendulkar and Laxman in the course of partnerships with them, and while his pulling and cover-driving is especially breathtaking, he has every other shot in the book as well. He is both an artist and a craftsman, repeatedly constructing innings that stand out not merely for the beauty of their execution, but for the context in which they come. By the time he entered his 30s, Dravid was already in the pantheon of great Indian batsmen, alongside Tendulkar and Sunil Gavaskar. What else could he achieve? Anything.
PONTING...
Acclaimed by academy coach Rod Marsh as the best teenage batsman he had ever seen, Ricky Ponting began with Tasmania at 17 and Australia at 20, and was given out unluckily for 96 on his Test debut. He was and remains the archetypal modern cricketer: he plays all the shots with a full flourish of the bat and knows only to attack, and his breathtaking, dead-eye fielding is a force in the game by itself. A gambler and a buccaneer, he is a natural at one-day cricket. He has had his setbacks, against probing seam attacks and high-class finger-spin, which, when out of form, he plays with hard hands. A few years ago there were off-field indiscretions that led him once to admit publicly to an alcohol problem, but he became part of the heartbeat of one of Australia's most successful teams and after the retirement of Ian Healy he took over as the man who led the singing of the victory song. With many lessons learned, Ponting's growing maturity was acknowledged by the ACB when he saw off competition from Warne and Gilchrist to succeed Steve Waugh as Australia's one-day captain early in 2002. It was a seamless transition: Ponting led the successful 2003 World Cup campaign from the front, clouting a coruscating 140 not out in the final, and acceded to the Test crown when Waugh finally stepped down early in 2004. A broken thumb suffered in the Champions Trophy in England forced him to watch Adam Gilchrist lead Australia's first series victory in India for 35 years from the dressing room, although he returned for the final Test. Batting-wise his first year was one to forget, but he began his second with 207 against Pakistan, joining Don Bradman and Greg Chappell as the only Australians to reach four double-centuries.
