Border-Gavaskar Trophy: Ravi Shastri left a lasting impact as the head coach of India, especially in Tests. While Rahul Dravid has not had the ideal start in whites, the former India captain’s legacy as the in-charge of the senior national team will be determined by the outcome of the upcoming 4-Test series, starting February 9.
By Akshay Ramesh: 4-2. That is what Ravi Shastri and his coaching staff were able to achieve over two-Test series in Australia that became iconic. With a feisty attitude to fighting fire with fire, Shastri and his men orchestrated two of India’s historic Test series victories Down Under, including their first-ever on Australian soil.
Much before Ravi Shastri officially took over as the head coach of the senior national team, we saw glimpses of what is to come in the 2014-15 Border-Gavaskar Trophy away from home. With MS Dhoni injured, Kohli led India for the first time in the series opener in Adelaide. After having been humbled 4-0 on their previous tour of Australia, India came out all guns blazing in Adelaide.
Led by Kohli, who was keen on making a mark after a disastrous outing in England earlier in the year, India gave Australia a huge scare before losing the hard-fought Test by just 48 runs. India may not have won a single Test in the 2014 tour of Australia but the passing of the baton was completed and the seeds were sown for the dominance that was to come.
“I don’t care if the scoreline reads 3-0 or 4-0. What I am more focused on is the mindset to go out and perform. The scoreline does not matter,” Ravi Shastri had famously said after India went for a 364-run target in the Adelaide Test in 2014. Kohli hundred set the tone for a gutsy but unsuccessful chase on Day 5.
BULLISH COACH
Cut to January 2019, Ravi Shastri was at the helm of the Indian side as its head coach and the tourists had successfully conquered their ‘final frontier’ by winning the Border-Gavaskar Trophy for the first time in Australia.
Ravi Shastri, in his usual self, had taken a jibe at his critics who had scoffed at his ‘best traveling side’ remark in the previous year. When India won the Trent Bridge Test against England, Shastri was at his bullish best when he said Kohli’s Indian side traveled better than most teams and even better than previous generations of Indian cricket. He faced flak from former cricketers and even the BCCI Committee of Administrators for his bold claim.
However, Shastri stuck to his guns. A series win in Australia, although the hosts were without Steve Smith and David Warner, was seen as a step in the right direction for mission domination.
“This is an Indian cricket team that will jump over a cliff to win a match for the country,” Shastri said after India wrapped up the series in Australia.
2 years later, India achieved the improbable. With a side that was strung by injuries and big player availability issues, India conquered Australia again, this time beating a full-strength Australian side and breaching their fortress at the Gabba.
As India coach, Ravi Shastri had walked the talk. He achieved what he set out to achieve. Fearless Test cricket, taking the pitch out of the equation and producing a bowling attack that could take 20 wickets at home. Shastri and Kohli combined to produce a battery of fast bowlers who were as effective at home as they were overseas to complement the world-class spin duo of R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.
The former India captain, who played his cricket in the way he carried himself on the field, and Kohli helped breathe life into the way India played its Test cricket, especially away from home.
Ravi Shastri was like the Jose Mourinho of Indian cricket. He was not afraid of taking the bullet for the team’s cause. His big talks might look bullish from the outside but they were mind games and his way of giving it back to those who looked to dominate India on and off the field.
It is unfair to say that Shastri’s era was blunder free. The captain-coach duo made some questionable calls like dropping Cheteshwar Pujara over strike rate concerns and playing two spinners at Lord’s but they stuck to their guns and believed in a process that helped them produced unforeseen results.
Ahead of the latest chapter in the much-storied Border-Gavaskar Trophy rivalry, the spotlight is on another former captain Rahul Dravid, who hasn’t had the best of starts to his coaching career at the senior level.
Shastri and Dravid are two contrasting personalities off the field. But there is little doubt that both played their game with passion and aggression. Shastri was in-your-face, Dravid was not. But the No. 3 batter showcased the aggression in his own steely style.
DRAVID’S INDIA LACK KILLER INSTINCT?
However, when it comes to coaching the senior national side, it seems as if Dravid has not been able to assert his style. Having needed a lot of convincing to take up the role after Shastri’s tenure came to an end, Dravid has not been able to produce the right results so far in Test cricket.
The ruthlessness with which India played their Test cricket has gone missing under the new support staff, led by Dravid. While Shastri’s trusted aid Bharat Arun’s role in helping groom Indian pacers into world beaters has been well-documented, Dravid & Co. have missed the trick in terms of the edge that the bowling group gave Shastri and Kohli’s side.
India have squandered Tests from winning positions, not being able to bowl out oppositions in the 4th innings, more often than not. South Africa chased down 200-plus totals with 3 wickets down in the last 2 Tests of the series in 2022 before which India allowed New Zealand to hang on to a draw in in Kanpur. In the Birmingham Test where India had an opportunity to complete a 3-1 victory over England, the hosts chased down 378 with 7 wickets to spare.
There were some stirring fightbacks in the sub-continent too. Shastri’s first assignment as head coach in Sri Lanka in 2017 and his last assignment as head coach in Tests – the home series vs England showcased the character of the all-conquering Indian side.
On the other hand, Dravid also had to work with multiple captains early in his stint as the head coach. Rohit Sharma has played only 3 of the 10 Tests that India have played since Dravid took over as the head coach. Since he took over as full-time captain, Rohit has played only 2 of the 5 Tests that India have played.
The Border-Gavaskar Trophy provides coach Dravid and captain Rohit to make sure India’s Test prowess doesn’t wean off. A home series win against Australia, who are keen and pumped up to end their long wait for Test series victory, will be the first step towards reclaiming the lost glory of the Indian red-ball team.
The intensity is going to be high and Australia know that they have a chance, albeit slim, to challenge India’s dominance at home. The heat will be on and the outcome of the Border-Gavaskar Test series will certainly leave a big impact on the legacy of Dravid, the head coach.
