Christchurch, July 31: A high-voltage behind the scenes drama was sparked off in the Indian dressing room by Rahul Dravid’s abrupt declaration in the Multan Test which left Sachin Tendulkar stranded only six runs short of a double century, the then coach John Wright has revealed.

Tendulkar, batting on 194 in the first Test against archrivals Pakistan, left no one in doubt that "he felt let down", Wright says in his just-published book Indian Summers, disclosing for the first time the tense moments the Indian camp went through although publicly every effort had been made at that time to play down the controversy.

Acknowledging that the team management had a "hot potato on our hands", the former New Zealand captain says he spent a sleepless night whereas captain Sourav Ganguly, who missed the Test because of an injury, was worried that the issue would snowball and end up dividing the team.

Wright says no one could be blamed in particular for the situation which could have been avoided had he himself been able to convince Dravid to declare earlier.

The New Zealander says "there was fault all round".

"I should have convinced Dravid to declare earlier and he should have grasped that it’s one thing to declare when a batsman’s 170 or 180, quite another when he’s 194. And Tendulkar should have pushed to get there quicker."

Once Tendulkar publicly expressed his disappointment, Wright knew they had a "hot potato on our hands".

"I talked to Dravid, who agreed that he had to have a chat with Tendulkar before things got out of hand. That combination of steeliness and serenity, so evident in Dravid’s batting, is the mark of the man: nothing fazes him."

As for Tendulkar, Wright says, "he felt let down".

"He’d been playing for India since he was 16; he’d stood up for his country in bad times and tough conditions, and often been the only man to do so. Having given so much for the team, over such a long period, he probably thought this was one time the team could give something back to him.

"Even the greatest have their goals and dreams and milestones, and a double century against Pakistan in Pakistan would have been a memory to treasure."

"After a sleepless night, I spoke to Tendulkar who confirmed that he’d wanted the team to cut him some slack. Then he and Dravid talked it through and resolved the matter."