5 times an Indian cricketer proved the saying 'Form is temporary class is permanent'

Criticism is part and parcel of sport, and athletes often consider it as a source of motivation. But what makes criticism in cricket interesting is its severity. With the game being considered as a religion in India, the critics are more fierce in this part of the world.Even the best of players who hold unimaginable records have faced a lot of criticism for not performing in a few matches. But they frequently answer their critics in style, which makes them even more popular, and which proves their class to the world.Here is a look at five instances when Indian cricketers showed their class to the critics:

#1 Mahendra Singh Dhoni against South Africa 2015

Dhoni’s knock guided India to victory in the second ODI in Indore

After losing the two T20 matches and the first one-day international match, there had been a barrage of criticism against captain MS Dhoni in the ongoing series against South Africa. He was criticised not only for his captaincy, but also for his poor batting form in the series.

Pressure brings out the best from the best as we saw the 34-year-old batsman hit an impressive 86-ball 92 not out (7x4, 4x6) to help India post a decent score in the match.

In the series opener at Kanpur's Green Park, Dhoni was blamed for the 5-run defeat. He was on the pitch when India needed 11 off the final over from Rabada. He did accept the responsibility for not finishing the game.

In the next match he arrived at the crease when India were 82/3 in 18 overs and it was solely because of him that India could post a decent score which they successfuly defended. A perfect answer to the critics indeed.

#2 Virat Kohli against South Africa 2015

Kohli is one of the youngest players to reach 23 centuries in ODIs

Virat Kohli has been bombarded with criticism lately by fans and media whenever he has failed to perform. The scenario was the same again when India played South Africa at home this month. Losing the two T20s and the first ODI, Kohli was put under a huge amount of pressure.

Kohli finally sorted himself and scored a composed 77 in the third match. But again he was on the other end of criticism since he failed to finish the game and India lost the match.

The very next match he answered his critics in style as he hit a six over midoff to reach the 23rd ODI century of his career. This knock not only helped India post a huge target for the visitors, but it also gave the flamboyant batsman from Delhi a chance to reinforce his talent to the critics.

#3 Rahul Dravid against England 2008

Dravid is the second Indian to score 10,000 runs both in Tests and in ODIs

2008 really had been a wretched year for Rahul Dravid who had scored just 669 runs from 14 Test matches before he arrived in Mohali. A lot of critics had started saying ‘the Wall’ of Indian cricket was ‘crumbling’, but he then delivered one of the most memorable innings of his career.

Dravid scored a brilliant 136 in the first innings, building a strong partnership with Gautam Gambhir which helped India gain momentum in the second Test match at Mohali. India posted a first innings score of 453, which helped them to finally draw the game and clinch the series thanks to the most dependable batsman ever produced by the country.

Arriving at the dusk of his cricket career, it was a revival, a comeback, an innings that will be remembered by generations to come.

#4 Virender Sehwag against West Indies 2011

Sehwag is the only Indian to be honoured with as the Wisden Leading Cricketer in the World in 2008

Considered as one of the most lethal opening batsman in world cricket, Sehwag made and broke records which no one could think of before. A batsman of his calibre also had to face massive criticism after he failed to perform against West Indies in the first few matches of the 2011 series. Sehwag had made a duck in the previous match in Ahmedabad, where India lost.

But he finally showed what he was really made of. Indore would witness that historical innings that would come to be synonymous with Sehwag's batting style.

He scored a mammoth 219 runs off 149 balls, a feat that would be difficult for anyone else to acheive from the same point where the experienced opener was before this particular match.

It took nearly four decades for a batsman to score the first double-century in one-day international cricket but less than two years for the second. Sehwag didn't merely break the record; he shattered it and raised the bar so high that it was hard to imagine anyone, apart from Sehwag himself, raising it higher.

#5 Sachin Tendulkar against Australia 2010

Tendulkar has one of the best batting averages among Indian batsmen against Australia

In spite of his incomparable records in both forms of the game, Sachin Tendulkar faced a lot of criticism throughout his career. One particular example was the 2010 series against Australia; after the Master Blaster failed to score much in the ODI series he was under a lot of pressure to perform.

In the seven-match ODI series Tendulkar made 14, 4, 32 and 40 in the first four games which was poor considering Tendulkar’s standards.

Finally in the second test match, Tendulkar was able to silence his critics with a superb knock of 214 during the second innings in Bangalore which helped India win the match comfortably.

The batting maestro did not take long to register his 49th Test century with the help of two consecutive sixes on the fouth day of the match. The milestone came from the 337th delivery he faced.

Tendulkar raised his bat and looked skyward while taking in the applause from the fans. That applause would have sounded sweeter to the right handed batsman since this was one of his most memorable knocks which eventually guided India to a comfortable victory.