Graeme Smith Has A Message For BCCI

Amidst India's prolonged struggle to clinch an ICC title, one of the bigger questions facing the side is whether or not head coach Rahul Dravid will get a contract extension even if the Indian team fails to end their trophyless run this year?  The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) anticipated that the team, under Rahul Dravid's guidance, will live up to their lofty "favourites" status at the upcoming world Cup this year. Following Ravi Shastri's departure, Rahul Dravid assumed the role of head coach and was at the helm when India qualified for the ICC T20 World Cup last year. 

Also, India was able to secure a final berth for the second consecutive year at the World Test Championship. However, despite these impressive accomplishments, Team India has been unable to break their trophy drought since their last ICC title win in 2013. 

Graeme Smith throws weight behind Dravid

Reflecting upon Dravid's ongoing tenure as head coach of Team India, former South African captain Graeme Smith highlighted the significant challenges that this legendary cricketer faces in his role. Smith, a former South African opening batsman, further urged the BCCI to grant Dravid a fair opportunity to reconstruct the Indian team.

Graeme Smith explained that when one assumes a leadership role in Indian cricket, they must confront the weight of expectations. He noted the abundance of high-quality players in India, stating that they have the capability to form two or three teams. 

Smith also added that the primary challenge for any leader lies in managing and balancing the squads, tour schedules, and different formats. These decisions regarding the composition and progress of the teams are significant and will be faced by Rahul and his selection team. 

“The biggest challenge in India for a leader is balancing those squads, balancing your tour schedules, the different formats, and those are some of the biggest decisions that are coming ahead of Rahul and his selection team. What do those squads look like, how do they move those teams forward. He’s a quality man and a quality performer. He’s shown it right through as a coach. So, you’ve got to give him a fair opportunity now to kind of rebuild India,” Smith told the Times of India in an interview.

Having finished as runners-up in the previous season, Team India will head across to the Caribbean where they are on their new World Test Championship cycle. Apart from a two-match Test series, the Indian team will also take part in three ODIs and five T20Is against the West Indies.