"It is an acid test for Rahul Dravid" - Reetinder Sodhi on the series vs South Africa being a huge challenge for Team India's head coach
Reetinder Singh Sodhi believes Rahul Dravid has a bigger challenge ahead of him than what Ravi Shastri faced as Team India's head coach on their last Test tour of South Africa.
Dravid started his tenure as the Indian team's full-time head coach on a positive note, beating New Zealand in both the T20I and Test series at home.
During a discussion on India News, Reetinder Sodhi was asked if the South Africa tour would be as big a challenge for Rahul Dravid as it was for Ravi Shastri in 2018 or even bigger. He responded:
"He has a bigger challenge because of the recent controversies that have happened, to uplift the team after that. It is an acid test for Rahul Dravid. If we talk about Rohit and Virat, to make them stand together and get the partnership back, if there is a difference of opinion between them, so Rahul will be addressing that first."
and that is never good. It presents Rahul Dravid with a ticklish situation and his man management skills will be tested because to win in South Africa, he needs his captain and best batsman to be happy and positive.
The former India all-rounder added that Rahul Dravid will have to help the Indian batters counter the Proteas' pace battery. Sodhi said:
"And this tour which will be in different conditions, how our batters excel in South Africa. South Africa have a good bowling lineup and Rahul Dravid will have to work a lot there."
South Africa have a potent pace attack, with the likes of Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje and Lungi Ngidi leading the pack. Duanne Olivier's return to national duty will give the bowling attack an even more formidable look.
"A very big Test for Rahul Dravid" - Reetinder Sodhi
Reetinder Sodhi highlighted that Rahul Dravid has a great opportunity to add another chapter to his already glorious career. He explained:
"We have done well in the home series but now is the acid test. If Rahul can get his team to do well here, the great respect he has in the entire world as a player, it will grow a lot as a coach also. So yes, a big test for Team India and a very big Test for Rahul Dravid."
The 41-year-old concluded by predicting an Indian win in the series. Sodhi opined:
"The sort of team we have and the way Rahul Dravid encourages them, the way he is balanced, I feel India will definitely hand a big defeat to South Africa in their own backyard."
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Team India have never won a Test series in South Africa. Although the Dean Elgar-led side are not as formidable as the Proteas teams of the past, it will not be easy for Virat Kohli's team to beat them in seamer-friendly conditions.