Rahul Dravid, former India captain and ICC Hall of Fame member, will succeed Ravi Shastri as the head coach of the Indian men’s team.
Dravid, who has been India A and Under-19 coach previously, will take charge after the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021, when Shastri’s term comes to an end.
His first assignment will be the home series against New Zealand.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India had invited applications for the post in October and the position was chosen by the Cricket Advisory Committee comprising former cricketers Sulakshana Naik and RP Singh.
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“It is an absolute honour to be appointed as the new head coach of the Indian cricket team,” said Dravid in a statement.
“I am really looking forward to this role. Under Mr Shastri, the team has done very well, and I hope to work with the team to take this forward.
“Having worked closely with most of the boys either at NCA, U19 and India A setup, I know they have the passion and desire to improve every day. There are some marquee multi-team events in the next two years, and I look forward to working with the players and the support staff to achieve our potential.”
Dravid, who has been involved in player development and coaching roles with the BCCI since 2015, has been head of cricket at the National Cricket Academy as well. He guided three young Indian sides at the ICC Under-19 World Cups: while they were runners-up in 2016 and 2020, they lifted the trophy in 2018 in New Zealand. Earlier this year, he was coach for the limited-overs Indian side that played in Sri Lanka while Shastri was with the Test team in England.
Several young players who have broken into the Indian side in recent times have credited him with their development. “Rahul’s effort at the NCA has nurtured several young cricketing talents who have gone on to represent the country at the international stage. I am hopeful that his new stint will take Indian cricket to new heights,” said BCCI president and Dravid’s former team-mate Sourav Ganguly.
As a player, Dravid featured in 504 matches for India, accumulating 24,208 in his career.
There has been no announcement made yet on his coaching staff. Along with Shastri, the tenure of bowling coach B Arun, fielding coach R Sridhar and batting coach Vikram Rathour has also ended.
