India’s match yesterday night against Namibia in the World T20 was not just the team’s last outing at the World Cup but also the finale for Virat Kohli, the captain, and Ravi Shastri, the coach.
Before the match, Kohli dropped a hint that Rohit Sharma might be taking over the reins going forward.
While Ravi Shastri gave a moving speech to the team in the dressing room, before bidding adieu to the high-profile, high-stakes job.
You guys as a team have over exceeded my expectations. In the last few years, you have gone across the globe, played across formats, and won. That makes you one of the great teams to have played the game.
Shastri became the Head Coach of the Indian men’s cricket team in 2017, and his time with the squad will be termed as highly successful. Though India could not win an ICC trophy under in his era, we did have historic victories in England and Australia in their backyard, and that is something one will have to give to him as a coach.
It was also under his watch that India became a bowling powerhouse, though Kohli also deserves equal credit for that.
As for the World Cup, well, this wasn’t the end we were looking forward to but we must stand by the team. We hope the Dravid era is even better for Team India.