Coaches are temporary, the fabric of the team is permanent says Ravi Shastri

Ravi Shastri, the new Indian head coach addressed his first press conference of his second spell after being handed over the responsibilities. The 55-year-old spoke about the schedule ahead which begins with a full fledged series in Sri Lanka. The series will see the two teams battle it out in all three formats of the game that is 3 Tests, 5 ODIs and 1 T20.

Shastri pointed out the fact that the team has tasted extreme success in the past three years and the credit should go to the players. He said the that every player who has donned the Indian jersey in the past three years deserves respect. Shastri added the Coaches like Ravi Shastri and Anil Kumble will come and go but the fabric of the Indian team remains permanent.

“I have matured since we last went to Sri Lanka. I feel have matured a lot in the last two weeks,” said Shastri at the pre-departure press conference for the series.

“I don’t come with any baggage. The team has done exceedingly well in the last three years, they are the people who deserve credit. The Ravi Shastris and Anil Kumbles will come and go. If India are the number one Test team today, it is because of the effort of the players.”

“People will come and go. The fabric of Indian cricket will remain” said Ravi Shastri.

Ravi Shastri won the race for the Indian head coach spot against the likes of Virender Sehwag and Tom Moody. Previous head coach Anil Kumble stepped down from the position after complications grew in his relationship with skipper Virat Kohli which was termed ‘untenable’.

Ravi Shastri demanded his rights to choose his own support staff and asked for Bharat Arun to be named his bowling coach. BCCI fulfilled his wish yesterday by appointing Arun for that position. When asked about the reason behind choosing Bharat Arun and his contributions to the team previously, Shastri came in support of the man.

There is track record there. Fifteen years of his life has been coaching. He has been with A teams, u-19 teams, junior World Cup teams. He knows the boys better than I do.

“In the 2015 World Cup, our bowlers took 77 out of 80 wickets. If he was a big name, you would have put him on the top of the tree. I don’t need to elaborate too much on what he is good at. It is there for everyone to see.” said Shastri.

On the relationship between the captain and the staff:

Ravi Shastri claimed that a healthy communication between the captain and the staff is very important for the former to have a clear state of mind.

“I will answer this in two parts, as a player and former captain. When you play the game, you want your mind clear and that happens with good communication with the support staff.

“As captain, my job was to put every player in this frame of mind. That was my job and that’s his job,” he concluded.