I was disappointed when I wasn’t picked as the coach in 2016: Ravi Shastri

Ravi Shastri is off to a great start to his coaching tenure, winning all 9 games so far. That is a different thing that the Sri Lankans are not the same team anymore but you still have to win at the end of the day. With the Australian limited overs series starting from Sunday, Shastri is aware that sterner battles lie ahead.

Shastri was appointed the director of Indian cricket for India’s tour of England in 2014 and the Board kept him on till his contract expired in June 2016. After giving decent results, Shastri was ignored for the head coach’s position as the CAC comprising of Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman and Sachin Tendulkar gave the nod to Anil Kumble last year. Shastri conceded that he was very disappointed after doing a great job for two years.

“I was disappointed when I wasn’t picked as the coach in 2016,” Shastri told India Today’s Boria Majumdar in an exclusive chat.

After missing out for a year, Shastri made a comeback

Kumble had a wonderful run for a year before his differences with skipper Kohli were all over the media. Apparently, Kohli didn’t like Kumble’s methods and spoke to the BCCI about his displeasure. Kumble later resigned from his position and the CAC ultimately got Shastri on board, who is very popular amongst the players. Shastri said that the dressing room was happy to have him back at the helm.

“When I came back, there were smiles everywhere in the dressing room. The nucleus of the players is very much same as what it was when I was there. There was no trust factor in the dressing room but that changed quickly,” he said.

After taking over, Shastri got Bharat Arun back on board as the fast bowling coach of the side. He already had Sanjay Bangar and R Sridhar as the batting and fielding coaches thereby retaining the exact support staff he had when he was in charge. “I believe in continuity and that’s why I got the same support staff back,” he added.

Shastri has already tilted his focus on the 2019 World Cup in England. He has pointed out that fitness of players is of utmost importance going forward. He is willing to experiment to recognize the right combination which could make an impact in England two years later.