Former India cricket captain and National Cricket Academy head Rahul Dravid has been appointed as Indian cricket team‘s head coach for a period of two years. The Cricket Advisory Committee comprising Sulakshana Naik and RP Singh on Wednesday unanimously appointed Dravid as the Head Coach of Team India (Senior Men), the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) said in statement on Wednesday. The former Indian batsman will take charge from the upcoming home series against New Zealand till for a period of two years till the 2023 50-over World Cup in India.

The BCCI had invited applications for the post on October 26 to appoint Ravi Shastri’s successor, whose term gets over after the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup. 

The BCCI congratulated Shastri, bowling coach B. Arun,  fielding coach R. Sridhar and batting coach Vikram Rathour for their “successful tenure.”

Under Shastri, the Indian team adopted a “bold and fearless approach and performed creditably both in home and away conditions,” it said.

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India climbed to the top position in the Test format and made it to the final of the inaugural World Test Championship in England.

India also became the first Asian team to win a Test series in Australia (2018-19) and followed it with another series win in 2020-21. India were also the first team to win all 5 T20Is in a bilateral series when it defeated New Zealand 5-0. “Under Shastri and his team’s guidance, India won all their seven Test series at home,’ the BCCI said.

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BCCI president Sourav Ganguly welcomed the 47-year-old Dravid appointment as the head coach of India’s senior men team. “Rahul has had an illustrious playing career and is one of the greats of the game,”the statement quoted Ganguly as saying.

Dravid’s effort at the NCA had nurtured several young cricketing talents who have gone on to represent the country at the international stage, Ganguly said. “I am hopeful that his new stint will take Indian cricket to new heights,” he added.

Jay Shah, Honorary Secretary, BCCI said: “There is no better person than Rahul Dravid and I am delighted to see him being appointed as the Head Coach of the Indian Cricket Team.”

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He said Dravid’s appointment was imperative for a “seamless transition” ahead of the two World Cups scheduled to take place in the next two years.

The former India captain is the right man for the job, Shah said. “Having provided the much-needed direction to NCA and overseen the progression of the boys at India U-19 and India A level, we believe this is also a natural progression for him as a coach,” he said. The Board will soon make appointments of other coaching staff, who will support the Head Coach in jointly achieving targets.

Dravid said it was an “absolute honour” to take on his new role. He praised Shastri’s efforts and said he hoped to work with the team to take their progress further. “Having worked closely with most of the boys either at NCA, U19 and India A setup, I know they have the passion and desire to improve every day,” Dravid said.