VVS Laxman pleased with Rahul Dravid's appointment as batting mentor

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Former India batsman VVS Laxman has said that Rahul Dravid’s appointment as India’s mentor for the England tour is a positive move. It is worth noting that Dravid has recently been named as team India’s batting mentor. Dravid was the highest run-getter for India on their previous tour of England.

This is a really welcome addition to the Indian team’s coaching staff, especially considering their poor performances with the bat overseas. India recently lost Tests in New Zealand and South Africa, along with whitewashes in England and Australia in the last three years.

Laxman said: “It's an excellent and positive move keeping in mind the experience that Dravid has. He is one batsman who has consistently performed well under English conditions. The India batsmen and the team will benefit a lot with the inputs Rahul will be giving to them. The move is a good one as he team will benefit not just the technical aspect, but also the mental aspect, the planning of an innings which is so important to perform in English conditions.”

Staying at the crease for a long period of time has been a major issue for Indian batsmen and Dravid could certainly help in improving that. Further, Dravid could also help in ensuring that minor flaws in the technique of Indian batsmen can be removed. This seems to be a very timely decision by the BCCI. It was under Dravid’s captaincy that India managed to last win a Test series in England. The batting legend scored over 13,000 Test and more than 10,000 ODI runs during his career. He played 164 Tests and 344 ODIs.

On Dravid’s superb performance in the 2011 England tour, Laxman added: “What was really impressive about Rahul's performance was that he, in a couple of Test matches, actually opened the batting and we all know how tough it is with the swinging ball, especially when it's new. The bowling line-up hasn't changed much. I am sure Rahul's experience facing these bowlers will come in handy in his discussions with the batsmen - not only the strength and weakness of these bowlers, but also their mental approach to a particular batsman. The reason why Rahul has been successful in English conditions is because of his mental discipline. In England, we all know that even if you are settled and playing well, because of a sudden change in weather conditions you have to almost restart your innings, which is different to the sub-continent or places like Australia.”