Questioned About India Star's Form, Rahul Dravid Gives Sharp Response

08.03.2023 - 07:11 sports.ndtv.com

The Border-Gavaskar Trophy hasn't been a batter's paradise so far. The first three Tests have seen bowlers, particularly spinners, dominating the proceedings, with all three matches ending inside three days.

Though a number of batters have struggled to put runs on the board, wicket-keeper batter KS Bharat's place in the team has been questioned, especially since Ishan Kishan is available for selection.

However, India head coach Rahul Dravid jumped to Bharat's defence when asked about his form, all but ruling out a change in wicket-keeper for the 4th Test against Australia.

In the three matches so far, Bharat has produced scores of 8, 6, 23*, 17 and 3. While there's no denying that his contributions with the bat have been poor, it also has to be noted that not many batters have been able to assert themselves on the tricky spin-friendly conditions.

cricket Australia Cricket Team 2023 Rahul Dravid Australia India Delhi

Former Indian cricket team spinner Laxman Sivaramakrishnan has revealed that he offered the current team management to help with the spin department, but his offer was not accepted. Following India's loss in the third ODI encounter, a Twitter user wrote on the social media platform that Kuldeep Yadav did not bowl according to the field and compared him to Ashton Agar and Adam Zampa. The user also tagged the ex-India spinner for his expert comment but his reply on the post stunned everyone.

"First Win The Series": Ex-Pak Star Blasts Rahul Dravid Over 'Irrelevant' Comments

The ODI series between India and Australia has been a low-scoring but close-knit affair. After India won the opener, Australia bounced back with a whopping 10-wicket win in the second match. With the series decider scheduled in Chennai, a lot has been said about the encounter. India head coach Rahul Dravid, speaking in a press conference on the eve of the final, said that the team has achieved its goals from the series and would be looking to rotate a few players. However, Dravid's comments haven't gone down well with former Pakistan batter Salman Butt.

"Very Fine Bowler": Rahul Dravid Laments Lack Of Games For 'Unfortunate' Spinner

The combination of Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav was pivotal to India's team composition in white-ball cricket at one point of time. However, in the recent past, both spinners have somewhat fallen out of favour with Axar Patel and Washington Sundar coming into the team along with veteran options like Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin. During the press conference ahead of the third ODI encounter between India and Australia, head coach Rahul Dravid revealed the future plan regarding the two young talents and even lamented the lack of chances given to Chahal recently.

Rahul Dravid Says Indian Cricket Team Management Has "17-18 Players" In Mind With Big Events Lined Up

Several important cricket events await the Indian team this year, and the think tank of the side has narrowed on '17-18 players' going forward, according to Rahul Dravid. This leg of home ODIs were very important as the players will now get into IPL and after that there is the big WTC final, followed by a tour of West Indies and a possible Asia Cup in Dubai. "Probably not going to get too many more games in our conditions. We had the opportunity to play in these conditions which is great. Yeah, coming out of the IPL to a large extent we are pretty clear about the kind of squad and the players we want. We have narrowed it down to 17-18 players," Rahul Dravid said.

Rahul Dravid "Has An Advantage...": Ravi Shastri's Verdict On Legend's Tenure As Indian Cricket Team Coach

Current India head coach Rahul Dravid remains one of the most respected figures in the sport. Dravid came into the Indian team as the head coach after Ravi Shastri decided to step aside in 2021. Under Dravid's guidance, India have done well but failed to lift the ICC Trophy -- T20 World Cup 2022 -- that the country desperately desires. Speaking of Dravid's performances as the head coach of the Indian team, Shastri said that the former needs to be given more time.

India vs Australia - Suryakumar Yadav "Has Not Played...": Rahul Dravid Opens Up On Star's ODI Struggles

He is more than happy with the takeaways from the nine home ODIs that Indian team has played and has already narrowed his World Cup core team to 17-18 players, head coach Rahul Dravid said on the eve of the series decider against Australia. India are going into the decider having already played eight home games - three versus Sri Lanka, three versus New Zealand and three against Australia finishing on Wednesday.