The Wall stays in place

PTI

New Delhi, November 29

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) today extended the contract of the Indian men’s team’s head coach Rahul Dravid in order to maintain continuity following the senior side’s stupendous performance in the ODI World Cup where it won 10 games in a row before losing the final.

However, there was no mention of how long his new tenure would be.

“The BCCI announces the extension of contracts for head coach Rahul Dravid and the support staff of Team India (senior men),” the sport’s apex body stated. “The BCCI engaged in productive discussions with Dravid after the term of his contract ended following the recently-concluded World Cup and unanimously agreed to further the tenure,” it added.

BCCI secretary Jay Shah said that Dravid will have “full backing” of the board, moving forward in his endeavour to win an ICC trophy, which has been eluding the team for a decade.

“Having won 10 consecutive games before the final, our World Cup campaign was nothing short of extraordinary, and the head coach (Dravid) deserves appreciation for setting up the right platform for the team to flourish. The head coach has our full backing, and we will provide him with all the support needed for sustained success at the international level,” he said.

‘Memorable’

“The last two years with Team India have been thoroughly memorable,” Dravid said. “Together, we have witnessed the highs and lows, and throughout this journey, the support and camaraderie within the group have been phenomenal,” he added.

Along with the 50-year-old Dravid, his support staff comprising batting coach Vikram Rathour, bowling coach Paras Mhambrey and fielding coach T Dilip have also got extensions.

It is expected that his stint would be at least till the T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA in June next year.

National Cricket Academy head VVS Laxman, who has often filled in for Dravid when the latter was taking short breaks, is believed to have informed the brass that he is more comfortable working with developmental teams such as India A and India U-19 apart from being busy with the new NCA set-up in Bengaluru.

“The board also appreciates VVS Laxman for his exemplary roles as head of NCA and as the stand-in head coach. Similar to their legendary on-field partnerships, Dravid and Laxman have worked closely in driving Indian cricket forward,” the BCCI stated.

BCCI president Roger Binny, who has been a bridge between the board and the head coach, also welcomed the decision.

“The performances of the Indian team are a testament to his strategic guidance. I am delighted that he accepted the offer to remain the head coach, and it speaks of the mutual respect and shared vision between him and BCCI,” he said.

Dravid said that he will remain committed in the pursuit of excellence.

“The demands of this role necessitate considerable time away from home, and I deeply appreciate my family’s sacrifices and support. Their instrumental role behind the scenes has been invaluable. As we embrace new challenges post the World Cup, we remain committed to the pursuit of excellence,” he said.

Dravid had replaced Ravi Shastri after the T20 World Cup in 2021, getting appointed for a two-year term which ended with the ODI World Cup.

Under Dravid, India also finished as runners-up in the last World Test Championship, losing to Australia in the final.

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