Former India and Mumbai skipper Ajit Wadekar feels Ravi Shastri is the right person to coach the current Indian team. Ravi was formally appointed as Head Coach of Team India on July 11, replacing Anil Kumble. The former Mumbai southpaw had taken on the mantle of the Indian team previously in crisis situations.
He was appointed as the interim coach for the Bangladesh series in April 2007 after India crashed out of ICC World Cup in West Indies and the Greg Chappell era ended. On August 19, 2014, he was appointed as India’s team director for the limited-overs leg of the England tour after a dismal show in the Tests against England. A month later he was given an extension as the team director until the end of the 2015 World Cup after India beat England 4-1 to become the world’s no. 1 ODI team. After Duncan Fletcher’s contract ended, Ravi was given another extension in June 2015 with the Indian team till the 2016 World T20.
Team India currently is a formidable side under the captaincy of skipper Virat Kohli, and they are No 1 in the ICC Test rankings. “He is the right person for this job. He is very positive man, knows the game well and has enough experience,” Ajit said.
Ajit was the Team India manager during 1992-1996 and shared a good relationship with the then skipper Mohammad Azharuddin. Team India enjoyed considerable success when Ajit was replaced by another Mumbaikar, Sandeep Patil as the Indian coach briefly. Since then Ravi has been the first from Mumbai to be appointed as a full-time coach though Lalchand Rajput was manager briefly when India won the inaugural ICC Twenty20 in South Africa in 2007.
After serving over two years as the team director, and taking the team from a crisis to the pinnacle, the 55-year-old Ravi had applied for the coach’s job last year but lost the race to Anil. Ravi applied late this time after BCCI extended the deadline and was named coach after a two-week drama.
“I have matured immensely over the last two weeks. I carry on from where I left. I don’t carry any baggage,” Ravi said before embarking on his first assignment as Head Coach to the tour of Sri Lanka, which comprises of three Tests, five ODIs and a lone Twenty20.
Shastri is also believed to share a cordial relation with Virat Kohli, who was instrumental in bringing him back to guide Team India. “It does help quite a lot when a coach and a captain are on the same page and the same wave length. Both believe in attacking on the field, so it is a good combination,” Wadekar said.
The 76-year-old, who led India to their first overseas win in West Indies in 1971, felt that the coach’s job is more strategic.
“You don’t have to tell them (players) about technique; they are aware at this level. A coach’s job is to plan suitably and then focus on implementing it. He must read wicket, do complete swat analysis and ensure that the captain gets the right team. He also must study the opposite side and pass it on to the captain. He has to lead from the front in team meetings,” Ajit said.
Wadekar who also had a stint as the Chairman of the National Selection Committee in 1998-99, felt coaching the Indian team was not easy. “It is not an easy task to manage the Indian team. Players come from different backgrounds and cultures. To get them to play as a cohesive unit is the prime role as the coach and I think Shastri knows it all,” added Wadekar.
