Former India captain Rahul Dravid said it was an absolute honour after the Indian cricket board (BCCI) on Wednesday appointed the 48-year-old batting legend as the new coach of Team India. He will take charge of the team after the ongoing T20 World Cup in the UAE and will be spearheading the team during the India-New Zealand series.
"It is an absolute honour to be appointed as the new Head Coach of the Indian Cricket Team and I am really looking forward to this role," Dravid said in a BCCI press release. "Under Mr Shastri, the team has done very well, and I hope to work with the team to take this forward."
Dravid further said he is well aware of the strength of the team as he has worked closely with most of the players while being charge of National Cricket Academy (NCA), India U-19 and India A team in the past.
"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. There are some marquee multi-team events in the next two years, and I look forward to working with the players and the support staff to achieve our potential," he said.
The same statement also read that Cricket Advisory Committee, consisting of Sulakshana Naik and RP Singh, took an unanimous decision to pick Dravid as the new coach.
"The Cricket Advisory Committee comprising Ms Sulakshana Naik and Mr RP Singh on Wednesday unanimously appointed Mr Rahul Dravid as the Head Coach of Team India (Senior Men). The former India captain will take charge from the upcoming home series against New Zealand," read BCCI press release.
The cricket body also congratulated the outgoing coach Ravi Shastri for a successful tenure while confirming bowling coach Bharati Arun, fielding coach R Sridhar and batting coach Vikram Rathour will also go out with the outgoing coach.
"The Board congratulates Mr Shastri (former Team Director & Head Coach), Mr B. Arun (Bowling Coach), Mr R. Sridhar (Fielding Coach) and Mr Vikram Rathour (Batting Coach) on a successful tenure. Under Shastri, the Indian Cricket Team adopted a bold and fearless approach and performed creditably both in home and away conditions. India climbed to the top position in the Test format and made it to the final of the inaugural World Test Championship in England," read BCCI statement.
