Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting has revealed that he advised India's Rahul Dravid not to retire from cricket.
Dravid endured a tough run of form during India's 2-0 Test series win over Australia last year and Ponting revealed that he spoke to the 38-year-old at the time.
"I remember after our last series in India there was a lot of talk and speculation about Dravid being finished," Ponting told ESPN.
"I actually went and found him at the end of the series and said, 'Don't you even think about retiring', because I just saw some stuff in a few of his innings that suggested he was still a very, very good player.
"I just said, 'Don't let them wear you down, don't let them get you down'. I received a similar text message before and after the Ashes from him as well."
Dravid rediscovered his form during India's recent 4-0 Test series defeat to England as he scored 461 runs at an average of 76.8 and was named India's best player.
Dravid has scored 12,775 runs at an average of 53 in 157 Test matches for India.
