Gautam Gambhir explains why Rahul Dravid will be a successful coach for Team India

Much to the relief of cricket enthusiasts in India, the Men In Blue won their first match since Rahul Dravid took over the team as their head coach on Wednesday, by beating New Zealand by five wickets in the first T20 game of the three-match series held in Jaipur. Meanwhile, former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir, while speaking on Star Sports’ show Follow the Blues, listed the reasons why Dravid will be successful during his tenure as the head coach of India. A newly-looking Team India under the captaincy of Rohit Sharma and the guidance of Rahul Dravid started their post-T20 World Cup journey on a high at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium by beating the Black Caps. 

Speaking about his former Indian teammate on Follow the Blues, Gautam Gambhir said that he believes Dravid will also be a successful coach of India since he was a successful player for the team. Elaborating the same, Gambhir added, “He was a very successful player, then he became a very successful captain and I'm sure he is going to become a very successful coach as well. With him in that dressing room, I think he brings a lot of assurance, he’s played more than 100 Test matches”. Gambhir went on to add that Dravid has captained the side and his unbelievable work ethic and hard-working nature definitely offer a lot on the table. 

How did India perform in their first match under Rahul Dravid?

Prior to coaching the Men's national side, Dravid earlier had a successful stint as India’s U-19 and A team coach, alongside being the National Cricket Academy(NCA) chief. Meanwhile, while playing their first match under Dravid's strategy, India performed well in all departments in the match against New Zealand. Bowling first, India restricted New Zealand for 164/6 in the first innings courtesy of twin wickets by Bhuvneshwar Kumar and R Ashwin, alongside one dismissal each by Deepak Chahar and Mohammed Siraj.

Chasing the target of 165 runs, Indian openers KL Rahul and skipper Rohit Sharma hit an opening partnership of 50 runs before Rahul returned to the pavilion. Rohit and Suryakumar Yadav then carried India’s score ahead by adding 59 runs off 49 balls for the second wicket partnership, though Rohit missed his individual half-century by two runs. Suryakumar top-scored for India by hitting a massive knock of 62 runs off 40 balls and Rishabh Pant hit a boundary in the fourth ball of the final over to seal the victory for India.

(Image: Instagram-@indiancricketteam/ PTI)