In the absence of head coach Ravi Shastri, who will be with the Indian Test squad in the UK for the World Test Championship vs New Zealand and the five-Test series against England, Dravid, a former India A and Under-19 coach is the favourite candidate to take charge of the limited-overs squad that will played ODI and T20Is in Sri Lanka in July.
One of the finest cricketers to ever don the Indian jersey and a true gentleman both on and off the field, Rahul Dravid, could finally be seen coaching the senior Indian cricket team on the tour of Sri Lanka. With the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) deciding to the field to parallel Indian teams for different series, Dravid is the frontrunner to be given the head coach’s role for the tour.
The news does bring joy to millions of cricket fans who have been eager to see the Indian cricket great guide the senior men’s team having done wonders with the India A and U-19 units already. However, it wouldn’t be the first that Dravid has been given the opportunity to take up such a role.
Dravid could’ve become the full-time coach of the Indian team when Anil Kumble had resigned from his post following the defeat in the final of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017. Former Committee of Administrators (CoA) chairman, Vinod Rai, had shed light on the matter last year.
Dravid has been on quite a lot of tours with the junior Indian teams (India A and U-19) and wanted to spend more time with his family rather than get on an even busy schedule with the national team.
The Sri Lanka opportunity, however, will be different for Dravid as it is an isolated assignment. After returning from Lanka post completion of the series, Dravid will resume his role as the chief of the National Cricket Association (NCA) in Bengaluru.
India will play three T20Is and three ODIs in Sri Lanka between July 13 and 27, and although the squad for it is yet to be announced, it is likely to be a second-string team with as many as 20 senior players being in England.
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