Ravi Shastri not in favour of breaks for coaches, says 2-3 months IPL break enough: Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri has questioned team India’s approach of giving frequent breaks to the coaching staff as Rahul Dravid once again is missing in the Indian setup for the upcoming New Zealand white ball tour.
While team India coach, Rahul Dravid will enjoy some off-field time following India’s exit from the T20 World Cup 2022, the NCA chief VVS Laxman will assume charge of the Indian side which will take on New Zealand in a three-match T20I and ODI series, starting 18th November.
Shastri took a dig at Dravid for taking a breather as he reckons routine breaks will significantly affect the coach-player relationship. He further said that Dravid must spend most of his time with the players as the Indian side will undergo a major overhaul in the next few months.
“I don’t believe in breaks. I want to understand my team and players, and then be in control of that team. What do you need that many breaks for, to be honest,” said Ravi Shastri scoffing at the idea of workload management for the coaching staff.
Moreover, he highlighted that 2-3 months of off-time during the Indian Premier League (IPL) is more than enough for a coach.
“You get your two-three months of the IPL, that’s enough for you to rest as a coach. But other times, I think a coach should be hands-on, whoever he is,” added the former team India head coach.
Notably, there are a couple of instances during Rahul Dravid’s short tenure where he skipped a few India tours. In his absence in the Ireland and Zimbabwe tours earlier this year, VVS Laxman was appointed interim coach. It must be noted that during India’s tour of Ireland, Dravid was with team India in England prepping for the ODI and T20I series.
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India needs to follow England’s template: Ravi Shastri
The renowned commentator exhorted the Men in Blue to follow England’s footsteps and play a fearless brand of cricket. He mentioned how England transformed its white ball teams into a formidable outfit after the 2015 World Cup.
“I wouldn’t like to point out anything, but there’s an opportunity with this team in the future to identify roles for players, identify match-winners, and go pretty much on the template of England,” he said.
“They are one team that really caught the bull by the horns after the 2015 World Cup. They sat down and said they are going to identify the best players for that format of the game – whether it’s T20 or 50-over cricket. Which meant if there were certain senior players who had to sit out, then so be it,” he added.
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