Batting great Virender Sehwag has defended his former teammate Rahul Dravid as the latter faces criticism for his performance as Team India’s head coach.
Dravid replaced Ravi Shastri as the head coach after the 2021 T20 World Cup and has not really witnessed a very successful tenure so far. Under him, India lost the Test series in South Africa as well as losing another Test in England. It was followed by poor campaigns in the Asia Cup and the T20 World Cup before India lost the WTC final earlier this month.
India’s performance during the four-match Test series at home against Australia was not convincing either. Following the string of poor results especially in the WTC final, Dravid has faced severe criticism. With the Asia Cup and the ICC World Cup 2023 lined up this year, the pressure will be on the head coach to ensure that the team performs well.
Virender Sehwag defends Rahul Dravid:
As Rahul Dravid faces criticism, Virender Sehwag has leapt in his defence, saying that his former teammate knows how to manage the players. Sehwag was speaking about what India need to do to win the upcoming World Cup at home. Defending Dravid, Sehwag said that the performance of the team depends on the players and not the coach.
“Rahul Dravid knows how to manage his players and get the best out of them. Once the player hits the ground, if he performs well then the coach gets appreciated. But if he fails, then the coach gets slammed. We reached the WTC final, but nobody is talking about the fact that reaching the final twice in a row itself is a big deal. But we are all talking about the defeats and questioning Dravid,” Sehwag said.
“He’s been an outstanding player, but as a coach, he does not go out there and play, it’s up to the players. School kaa naam teachers nahi banate, bachhe banate hai jo wahan se padke jaate hai (A school is known for its students, not teachers) and achieve success,” Sehwag added.
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