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Ravi Shastri is a multifaceted person. The Indian cricket team is currently facing multiple problems, and he has been tasked with this difficult job as India coach mainly due to this special characteristic in him. The candidates whom he pipped for this post, from the game’s point of view, had credentials better than his; but what they did not have was the gift of the gab — something that is Shastri’s strength.
The Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) made of legendary players like Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman, felt that what Team India needed was not a man who could diagnose and correct the technique in a player, but someone who would be able to instil confidence in the players. The Indian team is made up of stars with amazing skills. So they do not need a coach who will impose technique from coaching manuals. Instead, they are looking for someone to assure them that any drawback can be sorted out. The CAC too seems to have realised that the team needed a person who could guide the side on the path to success.
Soon after Shastri’s name was announced after all the drama, many criticised the appointment, stating that the CAC had yielded to the demands of India’s captain Virat Kohli, who wanted no one else but Shastri. This was the same CAC that had ignored Shastri — who had lifted India after a shattering 3-1 defeat to England in England in 2014 — to nearly the top of the rankings in all formats of the game — and brought in Anil Kumble as the coach, instead. By recalling Shastri, the CAC is now indirectly admitting that the man they had ignored a year ago had the qualities that were needed for the team.
An in-depth study into the personality of Shastri will reveal what made the legends in the CAC rectify their decision. From being a mere left-arm spinner, he rose to become an all-rounder, India captain, commentator, an administrator — as Indian Premier League governing council member — coach, and finally director of the senior Indian team from 2014 to 2016.
Having reported Shastri’s matches from his days in the domestic Kanga league in Mumbai to the international arena, it was easy to peep into his traits. When he was considered a mediocre player, he won the Champion of Champions award in the 1985 World Championship of Cricket in Australia and drove away the most sought-after prize of an Audi car while playing a vital role in India’s title triumph.
Shastri was often criticised for his batting style. Many felt he was just a defensive batsman with his trademark shot named the ‘chapatti shot’ (played by a roll of the wrists and flicking the ball away on the leg side ... almost with the ease of making an unleavened flatbread — an Indian subcontinental staple). But he proved to be a big-hitter too by hitting six sixes in one over in a domestic Ranji Trophy match for Mumbai against Baroda.
Shastri’s international career began in 1981 as a mere left-arm spinner. He then transformed into an all-rounder and even went on to open the innings for India. This was the first display of his confidence, whereby even with his limited skills he rose to great heights and fearlessly took on the responsibilities that came his way. A recurring knee injury ended his international career in 1992. But even before his career was nearing a close, he geared up for a new role as commentator. He read extensively on the game and discussed cricket not only with fellow players, but with journalists and umpires as well. He also carried with him the knowledge of having played 80 Test matches and 150 One-Day Internationals into the commentators’ box.
I have been fortunate to spend many hours with Shastri during his commentating breaks, when he used to visit the press box. His frequent visits to Dubai too helped me know more about the man. Travelling around the world as a commentator and watching cricket from different perspectives, he polished his skills as a good analyst of the game.
Confident gait
But many who have not closely interacted with him consider him a ‘nose-up-in-the-air’ character. Standing six-feet-three-inches tall, his walk with a confident gait rubbed on to his teammates during setbacks.
Shastri is also known to take criticism on his chin. Soon after he was ignored for the coach’s post last year, a huge spat broke out between him and Ganguly. Through my column, I had then criticised both for belittling their reputation as former captains. Early next morning, Shastri called me up and sportingly discussed the column without any sign of displeasure. In an hour-long chat the next day, he explained how he had lifted the Indian team whose morale was down after a the 3-1 defeat to England.
“The team morale was at its lowest ebb ... . When you get beaten in two-and-a-half days or three days, its bound to be that way. The reason I took up the job was because I had tremendous belief in the abilities and skills of the players. I knew it was just a matter of time before we turned things around, provided the boys were up to playing a brand of cricket that was fearless, and they could take the game forward without the fear of failure.”
Shastri managed to imbibe fearlessness in the players by giving them the confidence that he would back them, come what may. When asked about what exactly was “fearless cricket”, he explained: “Fearless cricket is trusting your abilities and doing whatever you do with intent. It is when you are scared of failure that you tighten up. Then you don’t play your shots and also give the opposition more respect than they deserve.”
It is this fearlessness that won Shastri the coach’s post, yet again, and this is what he will want from the players as well: Give their best, exploiting their individual skills.
One fondly recalls commentator Shastri’s staple “Just-what-the-doctor-ordered” to describe a perfect wicket-taking delivery. It remains to be seen whether his appointment as the coach is indeed what the doctor had ordered for Team India!
