Indian coach Ravi Shastri opens up on his relationship with Virat Kohli

Earlier this year, Indian cricket passed through a phase of turmoil which saw the then- national team coach Anil Kumble step down from the helm following a rift with skipper Virat Kohli. Due to differences with the captain, Kumble quit as Indian coach on June 30 after the culmination of the ICC Champions Trophy. He was appointed by BCCI in 2016 for a one-year period. Currently, the team is coached by Ravi Shastri, who was elected following Kumble’s exit.

However, it’s no secret that the current Indian skipper backed Ravi Shastri to become the coach of the India cricket team. The partnership between Kohli and Shastri has already done wonders and the present success of the Men in Blue serves as a testament to that. His contribution has been irreplaceable and he did a brilliant job at the helm to guide India in becoming a dominant force in world cricket across all formats.

The duo seems to share a great respect for each other as well. There is a sense of understanding and belief in one another’s ideas. Speaking exclusively to CCN News 18 in an interview, the Indian coach opened on his equation with Kohli. “Equation is great. We are similar personalities like you mentioned. There is an element of trust in our relationship.”

Shastri and Kohli share a similar mindset

He added, “We are both strong-minded and both play to win at all costs. We play to win. We don’t go there to do time-pass. This is not a team that is out there to fill up the numbers. We want to compete. We want to take the game forward. He is pretty similar in his mindset when it comes to that and he is in your face kind of character. With Virat Kohli what you see is what you get.”

The 55-year-old coach is presently busy mentoring the Indian team, which is playing Sri Lanka in the ODI series, without Kohli who is currently away celebrating his honeymoon with wife and Bollywood diva Anushka Sharma.