For a team who stood number No. 1 Test team in the world after beating Sri Lanka 2-0 in December 2016, India is suffering debilitate loses. India has slipped down its place in ICC ranking to number 4 in 2021.
After 2021 World Cup many important decisions were taken, which changed the gaming strategy of Indian cricket from resigning of India's head coach Ravi Shastri to Virat Kohli stepping down as India's T20 captain following the T20 World Cup.
Under Ravi Shastri, India won two back-to-back Test series Down Under and is currently leading a five-match Test series 2-1 against England in their own backyard. Shastri's tenure was a highly fruitful one for the Indian team, and it was under his guidance that India not just won the Test series overseas but also remained the No. 1 Test side for almost five years.
He, along with skipper Virat Kohli, has worked extensively on the team and took Indian cricket to new heights, but one thing that eluded him was the ICC trophy. India started as favourites in the 2019 World Cup, the 2021 World Championship final and the 2021 T20 World Cup as well, but choked on the big occasions repeatedly for similar reasons, i.e., team selection.
And now that Rahul Dravid is the boss, everyone associated with Indian cricket in any way will hope that India wins the ICC tournaments and ends the duck of eight years.
Rahul Dravid is a legend of the game, and his appointment as Indian coach couldn't have come at a better time than this. At present, with the IPL giving the platform for so many young cricketers to showcase their talents and make a name for themselves, Dravid, who has worked with them since their U19 days, can grill them to get the best of the budding talents.
There are so many things one can expect to change in the Indian team after Dravid's appointment to the top job. The Pioneer lists a few:
More chances for youngsters
Dravid has worked extensively with Indian players even before he took the India head coach job. He was the Indian U19 coach for four years before he took up the NCA head role in July 2019. He was in charge of "overseeing all cricket-related activities at the NCA and was involved in mentoring, coaching, training, and motivating players, coaches, and support staff at the NCA." He was widely praised as NCA's head for developing a steady supply of talent for the senior team and overhauling player fitness and rehabilitation regimens.
He has worked with players like Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, Sanju Samson, Washington Sundar, Prithvi Shaw, and Shubman Gill during his time with India U19, Delhi Daredevils, and Rajasthan Royals and has played a big role in what these youngsters are today.
With the Indian team expected to go through a transition phase in the coming years, Dravid is expected to invest in these youngsters to make them ready for the future.
Longer run time for players
In the last few years, a lot of players made their Indian debut after getting selected on the back of strong IPL shows, and in fact, did well with the national side as well, but couldn't prolong their international career because they weren't given a longer run. Players like Khaleel Ahmed, Vijay Shankar, Navdeep Saini, and Shivam Dube are examples of that.
It is understood that there is cut-throat competition in India, but the players deserve enough chances to express themselves. And under Dravid's time, players are expected to get many opportunities to deliver and it will be a good learning experience.
Strong bench strength
India won the historic Test series against Australia earlier this year by beating the hosts Down Under. The highlight of that win was India's bench strength and how, despite suffering from continuous player injuries, the Indian team beat all odds to do the unthinkable. Even though Dravid was not there in Australia at that time, it was his plan that helped India achieve the milestone.
It was Dravid's master plan to allow "A" teams to go on exposure tours overseas and get familiar with the conditions there in order to get match-ready so that when the situation arrives, they don't feel alien to those conditions. India lost as many as ten main team players during the Test series, but the replacement players never let anyone feel that way and delivered in India's historic triumph.
Better communication with players
Dravid has been associated with Indian cricket for more than two decades now and has seen Indian cricket in and out. As a player, captain, senior player, mentor, U19 coach, and now head coach of the Indian team, he has been through a process and understands every aspect of the game. And good communication is the key to getting results.
The players should feel free to talk and discuss with the senior pros about the game, and that's what Dravid can do the best. He is easily approachable and there's no one better than him to guide players through their game.
Rohit an asset for India
Rohit Sharma has proved his abilities as a captain in the Indian Premier League, where he has won five IPL titles for the Mumbai Indians in nine years. What makes him special is his ability to remain calm and get the best out of his players. His leadership style is very similar to that of former Indian captain MS Dhoni, as both of them remain cool on the field no matter how complex the situation is.
One of the highlights of Rohit's captaincy is that he likes to make minimal changes and trusts his players to win matches. In the IPL, one of the big reasons for Mumbai Indians' success was the consistency in team selection and how they used to give proper run to trusted players to express themselves. With the next T20 World Cup set to kick off in less than 11 months, one would expect Rohit Sharma to have the same success with the Indian team as well as he had with the Mumbai Indians.