Rahul Dravid joins Rajasthan Royals as head coach on a multi-year contract ahead of IPL 2025
Rahul Dravid has joined Rajasthan Royals (RR) on a multi-year contract ahead of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season. The appointment comes months after India won the 2024 T20 World Cup under his coaching. The 51-year-old also guided Team India to the finals of the 2023 ODI World Cup and the 2023 World Test Championship in major ICC events. In his coaching career, he also guided India U19 team to 2008 World Cup glory.
Dravid will rejoin the Jaipur-based franchise in a different role after representing the Royals from 2011 to 2013, playing 46 games and scoring 1276 runs. He then worked as their mentor till 2015.
On his appointment, the Royals’ Director of Cricket Kumar Sangakkara lauded Dravid for his accomplishments both as a player and coach. The Sri Lankan legend said in an official statement:
“Rahul is one of the greatest players to have played the game, but what he has achieved over the past decade as a coach is extraordinary. The characteristics that he possesses as a coach to nurture talent but also enable them to consistently perform at the highest level, will allow the Rajasthan Royals to further challenge for the title."
"I've already had some meaningful conversations with him about his vision for this team, and he is looking forward to delivering the results for the Royals," Sangakkara added.
“It’s the ideal time for me to take on another challenge” – Rahul Dravid on his appointment as new RR head coach in IPL
Rahul Dravid is now looking forward to his next challenge following his stint with junior and senior India teams. The legendary player is keen to take the IPL franchise to the next level. He said in an official statement:
"I am pleased to be returning to the franchise I have called 'home' for a number of years in the past. After the World Cup, I feel it's the ideal time for me to take on another challenge, and the Royals is the perfect place to do that. A lot of hard work and deliberations from Manoj, Jake, Kumar and the team has gone into the progression that the franchise has made over the past few years.”
“It's an exciting opportunity for us to take this team to the next level given the kind of talent and resources we have at our disposal and I'm looking forward to getting started," he added.
Apart from coaching, Dravid has represented India in 164 Tests, 344 ODIs, and a solitary T20I, scoring 24,208 runs, including 48 tons across formats. In IPL, he has played 89 games with 2174 runs, comprising 11 half-centuries.
Sanju Samson-led RR reached Qualifier 2 in the latest edition of IPL, where they lost to runners-up SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH).