"Start Banging The Door Down...": Rahul Dravid's Strong Message To Indian Cricket Team Players With T20 World Cup Dreams

20.06.2022 - 13:29 sports.ndtv.com

Dinesh Karthik as an "enforcer" opens up a lot of options going into the T20 World Cup, says India head coach Rahul Dravid, who wants to identify a core group of 18-20 players by the end of England series.

For Dravid, to be a part of the World T20 set-up, it won't be enough to just the "knock the door". Anyone who wants to stake a claim in that squad of 15 will need to "bang it down". "It was really nice to see Karthik come off and do what he has been picked to do.

That was good and it opens up a lot more options for us, going forward," Dravid said after the five-match series against South Africa ended in a 2-2 draw.

The last game was abandoned due to rain. "He was picked for what he has been doing exceptionally well for the last two or three years (in IPL) and kind of indicated in the sense that it almost came together in the game at Rajkot," Dravid spoke about the Tamil Nadu dasher's 27-ball-55 that was crucial in India restoring parity in the series.

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The 'Bazball' remained a quite hot topic during India's rescheduled fifth Test match against England. While some used it to mock the England national cricket team on Day 2 of the match, the same topic was used by the fans of England cricket as a reply to the critics later. Notably, England were 84/5 at Stumps on Day 2 but they eventually registered a dominating seven-wicket win over India to level the series 2-2. Their attacking brand of cricket helped them beat the Jasprit Bumrah-led side in the game.

"Keeps Increasing Our Heartbeats With Certain Shots": Rahul Dravid On Rishabh Pant

While Rishabh Pant has not quite set the stage ablaze with his performances for India in limited-overs formats yet, there is no question that he can turn a match on its head in Test cricket. Even as India went down to England in the rescheduled fifth Test at Edgbaston, Rishabh Pant's whirlwind 146 in India's first innings had set the platform for the visitors to hold the advantage for long parts of the match. In the end, though, England chased down 378 - their highest chase in Tests - with relative ease as they continued with their own new aggressive brand of cricket.

India vs England - "Can Always Look At Hindsight": Rahul Dravid Opens Up On Decision To Not Pick R Ashwin For Edgbaston Test

The Indian cricket team surrendered to a meek loss at the hands of England in the rescheduled 5th Test at Edgbaston on Tuesday, with the hosts chasing down a mammoth fourth innings target of 378 runs in around 2 sessions to inflict a demoralising and humiliating loss at the Indians. This is India's third straight loss in an away Test match in 2022 and signs are not great.

"Did Not Bat...": Coach Rahul Dravid Reflects On India's Edgbaston Loss Against England

Before the start of play on Day 4 of the Edgbaston Test, India were favourites to win against England, having extended their lead to 257 with seven wickets in hand and no one could have anticipated an England comeback. However, first, a poor batting performance on the fourth day saw India being bundled out for 245 in the second innings and then Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow played unbeaten knocks of 142 and 114 respectively as England chased down 378 to win the rescheduled fifth Test by seven wickets. As a result, the series that got underway last year, finished as 2-2.

"No Better Person To Take Over After Me": Ravi Shastri On Rahul Dravid

Former Team India coach Ravi Shastri enjoyed a successful tenure with the side as under his reign, India managed to win two Test series in Australia and they were also leading the series in England. However, the side failed to go all the way in an ICC tournament. During a rain delay on Day 2 of the ongoing rescheduled fifth Test against England at Edgbaston, Birmingham, Shastri spoke in detail about his tenure and how Rahul Dravid is the right man after him to coach the senior side.

"Can Bring Smile On Every Cricket Fan": Twitter Reacts To Rahul Dravid's Animated Celebration On Rishabh Pant's Hundred

Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant produced a counter-attacking masterclass against England as he went on to play a 146-run knock in the first innings of the ongoing Edgbaston Test. The batter's innings was studded with 20 fours and 4 sixes. Such was the importance of Pant's innings that even the calm and composed Rahul Dravid celebrated animatedly as soon as the wicketkeeper brought up the three-figure mark.