In the second semi-final of the ICC World T20 at Mumbai, the West Indies beat India by 7 wickets which led to India’s ouster from the tournament. The defeat also marked the end of Ravi Shastri’s tenure as the director of the Indian cricket team. It was a position which the former India all-rounder had held since August 2014. Given that the 53-year old was at the helm of the Indian team’s backroom proceedings for almost 2 years, India did gain quite a lot from his vast experience. Let’s take a look at a few of these things:
#1 Self Confidence
When you have a coach who is often seen slumping in a chair in front of his laptop, one who is never really seen actively involved with the team, you don’t really expect your team to be beaming with confidence. That exactly was the case when Duncan Fletcher was the sole man in charge of the Indian team. Enter Ravi Shastri and there was a radical change that could be seen in the team’s body language.
Right from his playing days, Shastri has been seen as a man who is always buzzing. He has a sort of contagious energy which has an effect on everybody around him. It was, therefore, no surprise that the Indian team had transformed into a confident unit, just a few months into the Ravi Shastri era.
The Indian team was no longer afraid of taking on any challenge that was thrown at them. Be it the Australian tour where a young Indian batting order was up against the Australian pace battery or the Asia Cup final where the Men in Blue were playing in front of a hostile crowd, Team India did not shy away from challenges and rose to the occasion.
When opponents hurled words at them, they gave it back in equal measure. Mitchell Johnson’s stares were answered with Virat Kohli’s glares. Dhammika Prasad’s effort to rattle Ishant Sharma was met with the latter bowling some unplayable deliveries at the former. All in all, it seemed as if the Indian team’s director had made each member aware of his abilities and had instilled a lot of confidence in them to go out and perform to the best of their ability.
#2 A rampaging T20 team
Going into the World T20, the Indian Team was widely regarded as the favorites to lift the trophy a record second time. However, a semi-final defeat at the hands of the West Indies led to India’s ouster from the tournament. Though the defeat was heartbreaking, it does not change the fact that India is a very good T20 side, especially this team which is a heady mix of youth and experience.
Seasoned campaigners like MS Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh, Ashish Nehra and Harbhajan Singh shared the dressing room with exciting youngsters such as Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, Manish Pandey and Pawan Negi. In addition to the team’s composition, it was the team’s approach too that was praiseworthy. In cricket’s most unconventional and flamboyant format, the Men in Blue adopted a rather conventional and risk-free approach, and as it turned out, it worked wonders.
Looking at the way the Indian team played, there was absolutely no doubt that the old school loving Ravi Shastri must have masterminded their strategy. For those statistically inclined, India’s record in T20 internationals played in 2016 reads 13-3. And to top it all, despite the West Indies’ World T20 triumph, India is still the number 1 team in ICC’s T20 International rankings.
#3 Exciting young talent
During his stint as a commentator, Ravi Shastri often pitched for young talent. It was, therefore, no surprise that a lot of youngsters managed to break into the Indian team during his tenure as the director. The likes of Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Manish Pandey, Pawan Negi, KL Rahul and Barinder Sran got an opportunity to sport the Indian jersey with the former India all-rounder at the helm. This policy to invest in youth has paid rich dividends as India have unearthed some potential superstars who can take up the mantle of the Indian team from some of the aging stars.
KL Rahul has been impressive in his short career so far. In 4 tests, he has slammed 2 centuries. More importantly, his technique and application have impressed some of the most respected names in cricket. Manish Pandey, on the other hand, has earned accolades for a calm temperament and a wide array of strokes, two key requirements for cricket in colored clothing.
Ever since Kapil Dev’s retirement, India have been looking for a fast bowling all-rounder. Going by Hardik Pandya’s performances in his short career so far, it seems as if India may have found a solution to their all-rounder woes, at least in the shortest format of the game. Though Pandya is a far cry from being an all-rounder in the mold of Jacques Kallis, he has age on his side and can only improve with more experience.
Finally, coming to the brightest star in India’s new crop of cricketers, Jasprit Bumrah. He has solved one of India’s longest standing problems, death bowling. MS Dhoni finally has a bowler in his team who can dish out yorkers at will. And the stats prove it. In the recently concluded World T20, Bumrah bowled the third most number of yorkers in the tournament (15) while his economy rate in the death overs stood at a respectable 6.89. All in all, the BCCI needs to thank Ravi Shastri for blooding these youngsters as some of them do look very promising for the long run.
# 4 Virat Kohli-Version 2.0
Right from the day Virat Kohli made his first appearance for the Indian team, he looked like a confident young man. He had an upturned collar, tattooed arms and a gait that would have put even the ever swaggering Sir Viv Richards to shame. His consistent performances over the years only added to his aura.
Before the test series versus England in July 2014, he was being touted as the best batsman in world cricket. The English team, though, had other ideas. They found a minor chink in Virat’s armour and exploited it to the hilt.
The English seamers realised that India’s star batsman was susceptible to deliveries bowled outside the off stump. 5 tests later, the cricketing world could barely believe what they saw. The all-conquering Delhi dasher accumulated a mere 134 runs in 5 tests at a meagre average of 13.40. In 10 innings over the series, the 27-year old was dismissed in the region of wicket-keeper to slip a staggering 7 times.
Both Virat and his team looked up to Ravi Shastri to restore their confidence, which was in doldrums, following the drubbing they received in the test series. Shastri’s appointment did not have an instant impact on Kohli’s batting as he continue to struggle in the subsequent ODI series versus England. However, come December 2014 and a few months into the director’s tenure, the Indian vice-captain seemed to have rediscovered his swaggering self.
In the test series versus Australia, Kohli aggregated 692 runs at a staggering average of 86.50 which included 4 centuries against arguably the best bowling attack in the world. The conclusion of the Australia series also meant that the reins of the Indian test team were handed over to Virat due to MS Dhoni’s retirement. The cricketing world then witnessed the rise of Virat Kohli the leader. Along with Shastri, he scripted two emphatic triumphs over Sri Lanka and South Africa which took India atop the ICC Test rankings.
In the recently concluded World T20, the Indian test captain bagged the Man of the Tournament award for a brilliant 273 runs in 5 games at an astounding average of 136.50 and a strike rate of 146.77. His off-side game was particularly delightful to watch. Against some of the best bowlers in the world, he kept dishing out the cover drive, almost at will. Ravi Shastri’s influence in the rejuvenation of India’s most vital player could be clearly seen.
#5 A reinvigorated test team
Going into the 2014 series for the Pataudi Trophy, India were on an ignominious streak. They hadn’t won an overseas test since June 2011 although coming agonisingly close on a couple of occasions in South Africa and New Zealand. However, they surprised the cricketing world by taking an unexpected 1-0 lead in the series when they beat England in the 2nd test at Lord’s.
It seemed as if the test team was finally headed north. This victory though turned out to be a false dawn as the Indian team succumbed to a rampant England side in the next 3 tests that followed as the Englishmen won the 5-match series 3-1.
In a bid to boost the flagging morales of the Indian team, the BCCI roped in one of its most flamboyant ex-cricketers-Ravi Shastri. The impact was instant as the Men in Blue defeated England 3-1 in the subsequent ODI series.
After a couple of ODI series at home, the Indian team then flew to Australia to face their biggest test with Shastri at the helm. Though India lost the series 2-0, they fought really hard against a relatively experienced Australian team and gave them a real scare on a few occasions. The talking points from the series were MS Dhoni’s retirement from tests and the emergence of Virat Kohli as a leader, one who led from the front.
In an interview after the Australia series was lost, a bullish Ravi Shastri said, “Give this team 12 months, they’ll be back in the top two”. Just over a year later, the Indian team director made good on his promise. After the Australia series, India registered a historic 2-1 series win over Sri Lanka in August. A few months down the line, they made South Africa taste humble pie as they defeated them 3-0.
The way the Indian team played, it was very evident that Shastri’s meticulous planning had been involved in the transformation of the team. He had clearly identified the players he would have in his test team.
Many of these players were kept away from the distraction of white ball cricket. In the long run, it served the Indian team a great purpose as a clear core was identified around which the test team was resurrected.
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