The great Indian drama for Team India’s head coach post finally came to an end on Tuesday night (July 11) with the very much expected appointment of Ravi Shastri. The former player was the widely touted as the favourite to land the job after he applied for it when the BCCI invited applications for the second time.
The way Anil Kumble had stepped down after being told about Virat Kohli’s reservations over his style, the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) seems to have appointed a man with whom the episode would not be repeated, hopefully. Shastri was a popular figure in the dressing room during his time as the team director and can be called as the perfect Kumble replacement.
But his popularity is not the only thing that has helped him to get the post which he missed last year, as he also did reasonably well as the team director. So, here is how Shastri fared as the director from 2014 to 2016:
Shastri was appointed as the team director during the 2014 England tour after Mahendra Singh Dhoni & Co. suffered yet another humiliating away Test series defeat. India was thrashed 3-1 by Alastair Cook and Co. and Shastri was given the responsibility of the team director before the limited-overs series against England began.
1. India in England ODI Series (2014):
Shastri’s appointment made an immediate impact, as Team India recovered from the mauling in the Test series to win the five-match ODI series 3-1.
2. One-off T20I Against England (2014):
The solitary T20 went England’s way, as the Men in Blue lost the thrilling match by just three runs.
3. West Indies In India ODI Series (2014):
The visitors had stunned the hosts by winning the opening game of the series by 124 runs before the MS Dhoni-led side won the second and fourth game to win the rain-marred five-match series 2-1.
4. Sri Lanka in India ODI Series (2014):
The island nation was thrashed 5-0 in the ODI series, as the Indian team warmed up in style for their daunting tour of Australia.
5. India in Australia Test Series (2014-15):
India’s miseries in overseas Test series continued, as they lost 2-0 in the four-match series. But Virat Kohli’s sensational performance in the series where he scored four centuries and one fifty managed to shift the focus away from the results to a certain extent. Also, this was Dhoni’s last series as captain, as he retired from the longest format of the game after the 3rd Test match in Melbourne.
6. India in Australia Tri-Series (2014-15):
India’s woeful performance on the tour continued, as they failed to win a single game in the tri-series featuring Australia and England. This was India’s last chance to test themselves before the World Cup.
7. World Cup (Australia/New Zealand 2015):
Leaving behind the performances in Test and ODIs, the Men in Blue gave a spirited performance in the World Cup, winning all their six group games to make it to the quarterfinal where they beat Bangladesh. The juggernaut of the defending champions finally came to an end against hosts and eventual winners Australia in the semifinals.
8. India in Bangladesh for One-off Test and Three ODIs (2015):
India was well set to win the solitary Test but their hopes were quashed by rain before Bangladesh inflicted a humiliating 2-1 series defeat on their fancied opponents in the ODI series. This was Bangladesh’s first series win over India and perhaps the lowest point in Shastri’s spell as the team director.
9. India in Zimbabwe ODI and T20I series (2015):
The Men in Blue won their first ODI series after almost 10 months, whitewashing Zimbabwe 3-0. The two-match T20I series ended 1-1.
10. India in Sri Lanka Test Series (2015):
Virat Kohli’s first Test series as skipper ended on a historic note, as India, after losing the first match, won the next two to register a series win in Sri Lanka for the first time in 22 years.
11. South Africa in India ODIs, T20I and Tests (2015):
The series began with India losing 2-0 in three-match T20I series before suffering the same fate in the five-match ODI series albeit with a different scoreline 2-3. This was South Africa’s first-ever bilateral series win in India, another low for Shastri. But the hosts restored their pride by winning the four-match Test series 3-0.
12. India in Australia ODI and T20I series (2015-16):
India’s woeful time against Australia continued, as they lost the five-match series 4-1. However, the Men in Blue made up for it by winning the subsequent T20I series 3-0 and reaching the pinnacle of T20I rankings. The MS Dhoni-led side had entered the series as the eighth-ranked T20I side.
13. Sri Lanka in India T20I (2015):
Team India warmed-up for the Asia Cup in style by winning the three-match series 2-1.
14. Asia Cup (2016):
The 2016 Asia Cup was a T20I tournament and India stamped their authority as the best T20I side in the world by winning the tournament with an impressive win over hosts Bangladesh in the finals.
15. World T20 2016:
This was Ravi Shastri’s last assignment as team director and it is safe to say that it did not end on a fitting note. India were the favourites to go all the way in the tournament but exited the tournament after losing to eventual winners West Indies in the semifinals.