It is over now. Ravi Shastri’s stint as India coach had a rocky beginning given the controversial circumstances in which he got the job and it has ended on a low too but between the start and the finish, he helped make India one of the strongest sides in Test cricket.

The Ravi Shastri-Virat Kohli combination worked because both individuals always seemed to be on the same page – they wanted to be aggressive, to win away from home, and do it in a way few other Indian teams have. They managed to do all of that.

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But while there was obvious growth in Test cricket, the team seemed to stagnate a bit in white-ball cricket. The method of motivation that seemed to work so well in Tests floundered in the shorter formats. The tactics weren’t great, they failed to find a consistent No 4 in ODIs and experimented at the wrong moments.

So when one looks at Shastri’s stint minus the hyperboles, the first realisation is that there was more good than bad. India may not have become one of the greatest teams ever as Shastri would have many believe but they certainly took steps in the right direction.

The big plus was obviously the series win in Australia. Under Shastri’s guidance, India scripted history by becoming the first Asian team to beat Australia in a Test series in their own backyard in 2018/19.

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There was talk, however, that India won because Steve Smith and David Warner were missing. So they repeated the feat for good measure in 2020/21. Though Kohli was not around for the full duration of the tour, Shastri and his stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane guided the team admirably in the absence of the regular skipper, as India defeated Australia to clinch the Border-Gavaskar Trophy for the second successive time.

India also made the final of the inaugural edition of the World Test Championship final, however Kohli and Co lost the one-off title clash by eight wickets as New Zealand were crowned champions.

The performances, not just at home but away as well, saw India hold on to the number one ranking in the world for 42 months from 2016 to 2020.

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India also reached the ODI World Cup semi-final in 2019. They looked like strong favourites at the end of the group stage and had even topped the points table. However, the Men in Blue faced a heartbreaking defeat against New Zealand in the semi-final to bow out of the tournament.

Shastri had initially become the director of the Indian cricket team in 2014 for a period of eight months from India’s tour of England till the 2015 World Cup, alongside Duncan Fletcher. He then had sole responsibility till 2016 and at the 2016 World T20 saw India reach semifinals again. The also has briefly held the No 1 rank in Tests around February 2016. Shastri was removed in 2016 when Anil Kumble took over but on July 13, 2017, he was appointed officially the head coach of the Indian team, reuniting with Kohli to forge a vibrant partnership.

Shastri’s record and a selection of other India head coaches

John Wright:
Tests: 52; Won: 21.
ODIs: 130; Won: 68.

Greg Chappell:
Tests: 18; Won: 7.
ODIs: 62; Won: 32.
T20Is: 1; Won 1.

Gary Kirsten:
Tests: 33; Won: 16.
ODIs: 93; Won: 59.
T20Is: 18; Won: 9.

Duncan Fletcher:
Tests: 39; Won: 13.
ODIs: 108; Won: 65.
T20Is: 25; Won: 15.

Anil Kumble:
Tests: 17; Won: 12.
ODIs: 19; Won: 13.
T20Is: 5, Won: 2; NR: 1.

Ravi Shastri (as head coach since July 2017):

Tests: 43 matches, 25 wins
ODIs: 76 matches, 51 wins
T20Is: 65 matches, 42 wins 

— ESPNCricinfo Statsguru and Scroll.in research

Record across formats

Tests

Test series under Shastri as head coach

Season / Series Start Date Matches Result
2017-2018 Sri Lanka v. India 26/07/2017 India 3-0
2017-2018 India v. Sri Lanka 16/11/2017 India 1-0
2017-2018 South Africa v. India 05/01/2018 South Africa 2-1
2017-2018 India v. Afghanistan 14/06/2018 India 1-0
2018 England v. India 01/08/2018 England 4-1
2018-2019 India v. West Indies 04/10/2018 India 2-0
2018-2019 Australia v. India 06/12/2018 India 2-1
2019-2020 West Indies v. India 22/08/2019 India 2-0
2019-2020 India v. South Africa 02/10/2019 India 3-0
2019-2020 India v. Bangladesh 14/11/2019 India 2-0
2019-2020 New Zealand v. India 21/02/2020 New Zealand 2-0
2020-2021 Australia v. India 17/12/2020 India 2-1
2020-2021 India v. England 05/02/2021 India 3-1
2021 ICC Test Championship 08/06/2021 1 NZ won the title
2021 England v. India 04/08/2021 In Progress

ODI series under Shastri as head coach

Series Start date Matches Result
2017-2018 Sri Lanka v. India 20/08/2017 India 5-0
2017-2018 India v. Australia 17/09/2017 India 4-1
2017-2018 India v. New Zealand 22/10/2017 India 2-1
2017-2018 India v. Sri Lanka 10/12/2017 India 2-1
2017-2018 South Africa v. India 01/02/2018 India 5-1
2018 England v. India 12/07/2018 England 2-1
2018-2019 India v. West Indies 21/10/2018 India 3-1
2018-2019 Australia v. India 12/01/2019 India 2-1
2018-2019 New Zealand v. India 23/01/2019 India 4-1
2018-2019 India v. Australia 02/03/2019 Australia 3-2
2019 ICC ODI World Cup 30/05/2019 48 India reached semi-finals
2019-2020 West Indies v. India 08/08/2019 India 2-0
2019-2020 India v. West Indies 15/12/2019 India 2-1
2019-2020 India v. Australia 14/01/2020 India 2-1
2019-2020 New Zealand v. India 05/02/2020 New Zealand 3-0
2019-2020 India v. South Africa 12/03/2020 Drawn 0-0
2020-2021 Australia v. India 27/11/2020 Australia 2-1
2020-2021 India v. England 23/03/2021 India 2-1

T20I series under Shastri as head coach

2017-2018 Sri Lanka v. India 06/09/2017 India 1-0
2017-2018 India v. Australia 07/10/2017 Drawn 1-1
2017-2018 India v. New Zealand 01/11/2017 India 2-1
2017-2018 India v. Sri Lanka 20/12/2017 India 3-0
2017-2018 South Africa v. India 18/02/2018 India 2-1
2017-2018 Nidahas Twenty20 Tri Series 06/03/2018 India
2018 Ireland v. India 27/06/2018 India 2-0
2018 England v. India 03/07/2018 India 2-1
2018-2019 India v. West Indies 04/11/2018 India 3-0
2018-2019 Australia v. India 21/11/2018 Drawn 1-1
2018-2019 New Zealand v. India 06/02/2019 New Zealand 2-1
2018-2019 India v. Australia 24/02/2019 Australia 2-0
2019-2020 West Indies v. India 03/08/2019 India 3-0
2019-2020 India v. South Africa 15/09/2019 Drawn 1-1
2019-2020 India v. Bangladesh 03/11/2019 India 2-1
2019-2020 India v. West Indies 06/12/2019 India 2-1
2019-2020 India v. Sri Lanka 05/01/2020 India 2-0
2019-2020 New Zealand v. India 24/01/2020 India 5-0
2020-2021 Australia v. India 04/12/2020 India 2-1
2020-2021 India v. England 12/03/2021 India 3-2
2021 ICC T20 World Cup 17/10/2021 42  India out in Super 12

Stats: ESPNCricinfo, Howstat and Scroll.in research

Inputs from PTI