Great opportunity for youngsters to impress selectors: Dravid

Great opportunity for youngsters to impress selectors: Dravid: Much like his talent with the bat, there is solidity and wisdom in Rahul Dravid’s reasoning as well. He might have retired from international cricket some 3 years ago, but he continues to be play an active part as the India A coach. And it seems he is enjoying it. The journey hasn’t been easy as India A lost a home Test series to Australia A recently but Dravid insists that persistence and patience are the keys. As India A begin their 3 match ODI series against Bangladesh A, Dravid, when talking to reporters was candid enough to admit that the current role was a challenging one.

Expecting a closely fought and exciting series he said “It will be an exciting series because it will provide our players opportunity to perform against international Bangladeshi players. They have only one uncapped player and rest are all international. We should welcome it. I think it will give our players an opportunity to impress national selectors”.

Having lost the ODI series in Bangladesh in June, India A would not take the tourists lightly. Dravid though said that the disappointing result would not be affecting India players who are accustomed to such challenges. “Our players will not be worried about the loss against Bangladesh. They would not like to add extra pressure of thinking about it. Already they are under pressure to perform well,” he said.

Dravid also opines that the three matches will provide ample opportunity for senior batsman Suresh Raina to get the much-needed match practice before the all-important South Africa series. Acknowledging the importance of winning, Dravid however, clearly stated that giving opportunities remains the goal. “It’s always a challenge, especially in a three-match series. It’s hard to balance out 15 players. That’s a challenge and balancing the talent is the exciting part of the challenge. You also want to try and win the series, there’s no doubt about it. But our goal is to also give the youngsters a lot of chances”.

On his coaching experience so far with the A side the classy batsman said “Coaching at the India A level is not about teaching technique. They don’t reach this level without having basic technique, skill and ability. Talking to them, sharing some of the experiences and sharing some knowledge is what matters. There is a lot to learn for me as well. I’m inexperienced as a coach; I’m learning everyday . It’s been a great experience working with a lot of the younger players. I’m benefitting as much as they are”.