Newly-appointed head coach Rahul Dravid doesn’t want to rush to mold the Indian team into his image, but wants to see how things are done at the senior level during the initial few days in the role. Dravid’s first assignment as the senior team’s full-time coach will be the three-match T20I series against World Cup runners-up New Zealand, starting on Wednesday.
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Addressing the media via a virtual press conference, Dravid said that his vision is to “keep getting better as players and as individuals”, and that he is “just understanding (about the environment)” and that his “The role is to initially sit back and observe.”
The batting legend Dravid has rich experience of coaching various teams of India. He coached the Under-19 team to the World Cup title in 2018, led several successful tours with ‘A’ teams and, earlier this year, was a senior during their limited-overs tour of Sri Lanka earlier this year. Coached the team.
When asked about the difference between coaching at different levels, Dravid replied, “Some coaching principles remain the same but (some things) definitely need to change for different teams. It will take me time to understand the players and mold myself to perform at their best. That’s my vision.”
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Dravid is one of the things that wants to emphasize on ensuring mental and physical well-being in the times of Covid, when teams have to live in a bio-bubble from series to series. With the grinding schedule going to impact players, especially those playing in all three formats, the former India captain says it is a reality in today’s world that not everyone will be able to play every match.
“Even in football, the big players don’t play all the matches. The mental and physical health of the player is important. It’s a balancing act and works towards getting everyone fit and ready for the big tournament,” Dravid said on the players’ workload management.
He added, “These are challenging times for players, especially those who play in all formats. We need to accept the reality that not every player will play all matches. We are playing different teams (for different formats). ), but the mental health of the player is important.”
On New Zealand, Dravid said that their performances over the years have been exceptional. “It has become fashionable to call him an underdog. His performance has been exceptional. They are well planned, they have beaten India in recent tournaments.”
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