Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma represent the concept of opposites in their batting philosophies, akin to fire and ice. Dravid’s approach involves anchoring and meticulously rotating the strike in the ODIs, while Rohit now prefers to unleash a barrage on the bowlers, taking the attack to the opposition from the very first ball. Dravid returned a career strike rate of 71, in stark contrast to Rohit’s 91, which has surged to nearly 125 in the current World Cup.
When they join forces, they become a cohesive unit, seamlessly blending their contrasting styles for a common cause. Their compatibility is a testament to the theory of opposite poles attracting.
One would not know if the team will carry the coach on their shoulders should India win the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, but Rohit paid ultimate tribute to the coach on the eve of the World Cup final. “what he has done for Indian cricket is massive. And he also feels that he wants to be part of this big occasion. And it’s for us to do it for him.”
The skipper dwelt upon the coach’s contribution in giving freedom to the players and backing them to the hilt. Besides, he also emphasised on the role clarity for the players. “There’s one thing for me to think about and the other thing for the coach to not agree to certain things. Clearly, looking at how Rahul bhai himself has played his cricket and how I am playing these days, obviously it’s quite contrasting. For him to agree and give me that freedom and liberty to go and play the way we want to play, that says a lot about him.
“Also, the way he stood by the players in difficult times where during the T20 World Cup, we had a good run up until that semi-final and we lost and how he reacted to certain situations and informing the players about this is what we are looking at and all of that says a lot about him as well.”
The trust factor between the coach is the most important one and on almost all issues the captain and coach have been on the same page, the opposite of which could derail the campaigns. But here the captain and coach have put together a brand of cricket that everyone in world cricket has been in awe of. And Rohit, once again, says how Dravid’s role in making it clear to that player what is expected of them.
“If you have decided something we have to go and implement that,” the captain said. “Obviously, the roles have been given to certain individuals as to what their roles are for this team and what can benefit the team. And I think 99.9% we played that brand of cricket. 1% that 0.1% I have taken out because you cannot always be perfect. That’s why I have just taken out that 0.1% but I am very pleased with the messaging that Myself and Rahul has given to the boys and boys have responded to that pretty well.”
What Dravid has done to the team is give them a sense of security and backed the players through thick and thin, rather more through thin than thick. Shreyas Iyer, for example, struggled for runs initially and questions were raised over his ability to play the short ball. Dravid backed him and today is the difference between 2019 and 2023 campaigns – there was no permanent No 4 in England and Iyer gave solidity to the position. Four years ago the team got knocked out in the semifinal and now they are playing for the World Cup.
“Without worrying about their place in the team, without worrying about the scores that they get, and without even worrying about what happens outside. That is the most important part, because that environment that we’ve created is a very special one and we want to maintain that environment as long as possible and not get faced by what happens outside or what people talk or if the score doesn’t come from individuals, I don’t want them to change the thought process that they were in before the start of the tournament. So, all those things are very clear with everyone. And I thought in this entire 10 games that we played; we were quite straightforward with that thought,” Rohit elaborated on the point.
Rohit has been ultra-aggressive in the World Cup and he explained their approach. “I did want to play in a certain manner. I had no idea that it was going to come off or what if it doesn’t come off. I had plans for both, if it comes off what I’m going to do in the next game, if it doesn’t come off what I’m going to do in the next game.
“But like see for me what is important is because I start the innings, there is a bit of freedom there for me to go and express myself but you must have seen in that game against England where I had to change my game a little bit once we lost a few wickets and then I had to change my game a little bit. I’m prepared to do that as well. That is what the experienced player needs to do,” the captain said. He has amassed 550 with that approach at a strike rate of 124.15 and average of 55, setting the platform for India’s dominating wins.
