Ravi Shastri hailed the Indian men’s cricket team as one of the greats of the game for their successes around the world as his stint as head coach drew to a close on Monday.
Speaking to former West Indies bowler Ian Bishop ahead of India’s last match of the T20 World Cup against Namibia, Shastri said on an interview aired by Star Sports that he is satisfied with what he has achieved as coach of the Indian team.
Shastri reflected on the Indian team’s journey under him over the years and what we can expect with Rahul Dravid at the helm going forward, while also adding that below par performances due lack of rest is one of the biggest learnings from the tournament.
Shastri also praised Virat Kohli, who will relinquish his post as India’s T20I captain with the team’s campaign coming to an end. Shastri said Kohli’s inspiring leadership played a huge role in guiding the team forward.
Here are excerpts of Shastri’s chat with Bishop:
As you reflect on the last few years, how have you seen your journey as coach?
I think it has been fantastic. When I took this job, I said in my mind I want to make a difference. And I think I have. Sometimes in life it’s not about all that you have accomplished, it is about what you overcome. And what these guys have overcome over the last five years, the way they have travelled across the globe and performed in all formats of the game, will make this team, irrespective of what happened in this T20 World Cup, one of the great teams in the history of the game. I have absolutely no doubt in my mind. It’s unfortunate that we’re out of this tournament, but that takes nothing away from a great side.
What will you say were the high points in this phase for you?
Across all formats there are plenty. But I would say winning in red ball cricket across the globe – in West Indies, Sri Lanka, Australia, and in England we’re leading the series. It could be the longest series lead in the history of cricket since the next Test is next year, but I’ll take that. To go across and beat all these sides. Every team in white ball cricket, be it T20Is or ODIs, we’ve beaten sides in their own dens, which was my endeavour and the team’s endeavour. Because you were always labelled as big bullies at home but when you had to travel outside, you didn’t have the goods. But this team has shown they have more and plenty of that.
Do you feel you have left this team in the place you would have hoped?
Absolutely. I think Rahul Dravid has inherited a great team. And with his stature and experience, he can only raise the bar for this team in time to come. There are still a lot of players here who will play for another three-four years, which is very important. It’s not a team in transition overnight and that will make the biggest difference. Virat is still there, he has done a fantastic job as leader of the side. In fact, he has been one of the biggest and best ambassadors for Test match cricket over the last five years. A lot of credit goes to him for the way he has thought about how he wants the team to play, and how the team has rallied around him.
What are the learnings from this T20 World Cup?
First of all, it’s rest. See, I am mentally drained but I expect that at my age. These guys are physically and mentally drained. You know, six months in a bubble... what we would have ideally liked is a bigger gap between the IPL and World Cup. When the big games come, when the pressure hits you, you are that not switched on as you should be. This is not an excuse. This is not an excuse, we take defeats because we are not scared of losing. In trying to win, you will lose a game. Here, we didn’t try to win because the X-Factor was missing.
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