‘Don’t tell him…’ – Jadeja has a special request for BCCI as Rahul Dravid named India’s new head coach

Rahul Dravid, on Wednesday (November 3), was announced as the new Team India head coach, who will take over from Ravi Shastri post the T20 World Cup 2021 edition. Many believed Dravid was the ideal candidate to replace Shastri — who took over as India’s coach since mid-2017 — and the Sourav Ganguly-led Indian cricket board managed to convince The Wall for the top job, after reports initially claimed that Dravid wasn’t willing to stay away from his young family for so long with coaching duties.

Dravid has served Indian cricket brilliantly since his international debut. Apart from his 13,288 runs in Tests and 10,889 ODI runs, he performed various roles for the national side during his playing days; i.e. serving as a part-time wicketkeeper, finisher or middle-order batter in ODIs, opener and captain. Since his retirement, Dravid has groomed India’s young talents as U-19 and A team’s coach before taking over as the National Cricket Academy (NCA) head, in Bengaluru.

Thus, many have their eyes on Dravid in his new role as India’s head coach. Ahead of the start of his tenure, former Indian cricketer Ajay Jadeja has made a special request for the BCCI.

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Jadeja told Cricbuzz, “If there’s a role model of discipline and dedication, it’s Rahul Dravid. You want a lot of things from a coach but discipline and dedication are probably the two prime things. It will be interesting to see who will make the next T20 captain – Rahul Dravid or [the selectors]. There’s no doubt in his praise but when someone becomes an Indian coach, if you don’t let him work or don’t use his vision then it’s all redundant, anyone can be a coach in that way.

“So if you have brought Rahul Dravid, the biggest name, then at least go with his vision. This is my request to the board… If a man like Rahul Dravid has joined then please, please move alongside his vision, understanding and dedication, don’t tell him how to run the team,” he added.

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Amid huge expectations, Dravid will be hoping to fulfill the country’s wish of guiding Team India to their first-ever ICC title since 2013, i.e. if they return without the trophy in the ongoing T20 WC. As of now, Kohli-led India have a very small chance to proceed to the semi-finals from their group (Pool B).