Rahul Dravid must not stick to same group of players for long: Ravi Shastri

The
task of rebuilding the Indian cricket team now lies with head coach Rahul Dravid. Since
Virat Kohli resigned from captaincy, it seems something is missing out of this
team. Kohli led the side with pride and aggression. During India’s recent South
Africa tour that bold and aggressive attitude was missing. Kohli forged a
partnership with Ravi Shastri, former India head coach, and that welled very
well. Now, as there is a change in the team as Dravid took over the reins,
India await a new Test captain.

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This is a crucial stage for Indian cricket and
every call is going to have a big impact on India’s performance going forward.
With the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia and the 2023 ODI World Cup are
scheduled, India under Dravid need to rearrange the team quickly. 

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Shastri
said, during this period of transition, current head coach Dravid needs to
identify the right kind of players who can take the team forward in the next
four-five years. He also said that the team management must mix youngsters with
the experienced players in the right manner and not stick with the same squad
for too long in a bid to ease the adjustments.

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“It’s
a very important period for Indian cricket, there will be a period of
transition in the next 8-10 months. It’s important to identify the right kind
of players who will take you forward in 4-5 years. I always believe that there
should be a mix between youth and experience. Sometimes change is needed if you
aim for the future. This is the time. They need to look for youth in the next
six months, need to be quick. If you stick with the same for too long a period
then the adjustment will be very difficult,” he told Pakistan pace legend,
Shoaib Akhtar, during an interaction on his YouTube channel.

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India
have a packed calendar in 2022 in the build-up to the T20 World Cup in
Australia in October. India will play three home series at home from February
and play England in the last year’s postponed fifth Test in July in England.