Dubai: The Indian team were ‘mentally and physically drained’ during the T20 World Cup. They didn’t even ‘try to win’ as it wasn’t switched on during pressure situations in big games. These were the stunning confessions outgoing head coach Ravi Shastri made before the side’s final match at the showpiece here Monday.
Ravi Shastri will end his tenure as head coach after the match Monday evening against Namibia. He also said that his successor Rahul Dravid has ‘inherited’ a great team. It will only raise the bar given his stature and experience as it’s still not in ‘transition’.
Ian Bishop asked Shastri about the takeaways from the poor campaign during which India lost to Pakistan and New Zealand. The outgoing coach said: “All I can think first of, is rest.”
Shastri added, “I am mentally drained but I expect that at my age but these guys are also physically and mentally drained. Six months in a bubble…What we would have ideally liked was a bigger gap between the IPL and the T20 World Cup. This is because when the big games come, when pressure hits you, you are not that switched on as you should be.”
Shastri said that he doesn’t want to cite excuses but the team were not in best shape to even try and win games here. “It’s not an excuse. We take defeat and we are not scared of losing. In trying to win, you will lose a game but here we didn’t try to win because that X-factor was missing,” asserted Shastri.
The outgoing coach said Dravid’s upcoming tenure will be very successful. He has a world class team that is still at least four years away from going into the transition mode. Dravid’s tenure will start with the home T20 and Test series against New Zealand.
“Absolutely, in Rahul Dravid, we have got a guy, who has inherited a great team. With his stature and experience, he can only raise the bar in times to come,” Shastri said.
“… There are still a lot of players over here who will play for another 3-4 years which is very important. It is not a team in transition, overnight, it will not change. Virat (Kohli) is still there and as leader of the side, he is one of the biggest and best ambassadors of Test cricket,” Shastri informed.
For Shastri, creating a team that can win Test matches overseas gave him the greatest job satisfaction.
“Across all formats, there are plenty of successes. However, I would say winning in red ball cricket across the globe, winning in West Indies, Sri Lanka, Australia. England, we are leading a series, could be the longest lead in history of Test cricket because next Test is next year but I take that and settle for that for 12 months,” Shastri said with a big smile lighting up his face.
“But to beat these sides and every team in red and white ball cricket, we have beaten sides in their den which was my and the team’s endeavour. You were always labelled as big bullies at home but when we travelled outside, we didn’t have the goods. This team have shown and more and plenty of that,” Shastri pointed out.
For Shastri, there is no doubt in his mind that he has made a huge difference. “When I took up this job, in my mind I wanted to make a difference and I think I have. Sometimes in life it’s not what you accomplish but what you overcome,” Shastri said.
“What these guys have overcome over the last five years is they have travelled across the globe and won in every corner in all formats of the game. Irrespective of what happens here, it is one of the great teams of the game. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind. It’s unfortunate that we are out of this tournament but that takes nothing away from a great side,” Shastri signed off.
