Dravid was named Indian team head coach in November 2021, following Ravi Shastri, who was in charge from 2017 to 2021.
Rahul Dravid, the current head coach of Team India and a batting star, turns 51 on Thursday, January 11.
Dravid, regarded as one of the greatest hitters of all time, played 164 Tests, 344 ODIs, and a single T20I across a 16-year career from 1996 to 2012.
He was a tenacious right-handed hitter who scored 13,288 runs in Tests at an average of 52.31, with 36 hundred and 63 fifties.
His credentials in limited-overs cricket were sometimes called into doubt.
But he silenced his detractors by collecting 10,889 runs at an average of 39.16, including 12 hundred and 83 half-centuries.
The birthday boy captained India in 25 Tests, amassing 1,736 points at an average of 44.51.
He led India to eight Test victories. Dravid also led the Men in Blue in 79 One-Day Internationals, amassing 2,658 runs at a 42.19 average.
India won 42 of the 42 One-Day Internationals he led.
Dravid coached the U-19 and India teams after retiring and served as the head of the National
Cricket Academy (NCA) before taking over as head coach of the senior Indian men’s cricket team.
Both have performed admirably over their separate tenures.
However, we examine whether Dravid has outperformed Ravi Shastri as India’s head coach.
Key triumphs and setbacks during Rahul Dravid and Ravi Shastri’s coaching tenure
Looking at Dravid’s current tenure, India reached the World Test Championship (WTC) final as well as the ODI World Cup final in 2023.
On both occasions, they were quite remarkable in the build-up to the major clash.
The Men in Blue remained unbeaten at home in the One-Day International World Cup until
succumbing to pressure in the final against Australia at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Previously, India struggled in the 2022 T20 World Cup, losing to England by 10 wickets in the semi-finals in Adelaide.
India has been excellent in bilateral series, but they have failed to win an ICC title under Dravid’s leadership.
Under the 51-year-old, India also blew two golden opportunities to win their first Test series in South Africa.
They opened the 2021-22 season with a 113-run victory in the first Test at SuperSport Park in Centurion.
However, India lost the following two Tests by seven wickets apiece, resulting in a 2-1 series defeat.
To make matters worse, they were thrashed 3-0 in the ensuing one-day international series.
India recently paid a multi-format trip to South Africa.
While they leveled the T20I series and won the ODI series without Dravid’s coaching, they only managed to draw the two-match Test series 1-1.
Several observers claimed that the Rohit Sharma-Dravid combination gave India the best chance of winning a Test series in South Africa against a weak host.
They did, however, surrender in the first Test in Centurion before rallying back spectacularly in Cape Town.
To return to Ravi Shastri, as coach, India flourished in the Test format.
His most notable accomplishment was being a part of two Test series victories in Australia.
Even though most of their big players were injured, India won their first Test series in Australia in 2018-19 and another in 2020-21.
Similarly to Dravid’s reign, India failed to win a Test series in South Africa, falling 2-1 in 2017-18 despite fielding a good team headed by Virat Kohli.
In terms of limited overs cricket, they fared well in bilateral series, although India did not win any ICC titles during Ravi Shastri’s tenure.
They were defeated by New Zealand by eight wickets in the 2021 World Test Championship final
in Southampton after losing the 2019 ODI World Cup semi-final in Manchester.
The Men in Blue also had a disappointing performance in the 2021 T20 World Cup in the UAE.
They were eliminated in the quarter-finals after crushing defeats to Pakistan and New Zealand in their first two games of the competition.
When comparing their coaching careers
If we start with Ravi Shastri, India created a strong fast bowling attack during his term as coach, with players like Jasprit Bumrah,
Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma, and Umesh Yadav, among others, combined to win India Test matches, particularly in foreign circumstances.
Dravid and company continue to reap the benefits, with Mohammed Siraj replacing players like Ishant and Umesh.
India has seen numerous young hitters blossom under Dravid. Shreyas Iyer, Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Rinku Singh, to mention a few, have dominated international cricket in recent seasons.
They are still imperfect products, but they have shown enough promise on the big stage.
Dravid’s experience with such youngsters at the India A and U-19 levels has aided him.
When comparing Dravid’s and Ravi Shastri’s coaching tenures, neither has been able to end India’s ICC championship drought.
Dravid would want to see this modification during the T20 World Cup later this year.
However, under Ravi Shastri, India won a two-Test series in Australia. India lost one and drew a Test series in South Africa under Dravid’s leadership.
As India coaches, there isn’t much to choose between Shastri and Dravid.
In terms of accomplishments, the former is currently somewhat ahead.
However, a more accurate appraisal of Dravid’s term in comparison to Ravi Shastri can be made until his tenure as Team India’s head coach concludes.
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