Will Rahul Dravid succeed Ravi Shastri as coach of the Indian cricket team?
For now, all signs point to Rahul Dravid taking over the reins from Ravi Shastri as the head coach of the national side. That said, it is quite unfair to pin the blame on Shastri keeping the recent WTC final against New Zealand in mind.
There is no doubt that Dravid has taken some major steps as a coach after hanging up his boots and wicketkeeping gloves. His first major assignment comes against a rebuilding Sri Lankan outfit and will also serve as a litmus test before he (at some stage) will don Shastri's hat.
Before throwing brickbats, please note that this is purely speculative, and the opinion of Rahul Dravid succeeding Shastri stems from the fact that he is one of the most suited to guide India in the long run.
Rahul Dravid's experience in the coaching arena
The 48-year-old comes in with ample coaching experience. So far, he's managed and coached the India A and the U-19 sides, and has delivered. India owes much of their 2018 ICC U-19 World Cup success to the ex-Karnataka batsman.
In addition, he's also led the junior teams to wins in India and abroad, giving a glimpse of what he brings to the table.
Then comes that stint as an overseas batting consultant for the senior side in 2017. His role at the NCA as the Head of Cricket saw him blood young talent as well as build solid bench strength.
BCCI president and former India skipper Sourav Ganguly credited Rahul Dravid for his contributions:
"The role of the NCA in grooming the group of players is very important. Their progress needs to be monitored. A lot of credit goes to Rahul Dravid and the NCA team for creating this bench strength."
What will a successful tour mean for Rahul Dravid?
For Dravid, it's another feather in his cap. He's done enough in the past as a coach and a successful stint with a young side makes him all the more of a favorable candidate to take over from Shastri when he calls time on his coaching career.
A look at his track record cements the fact that he has what it takes to be a coach - immense hands-on experience, temperament, astute knowledge of the game, and most importantly, has earned the respect of players like Shastri.
What Dravid intends to do is also broaden the horizons of the players. Ahead of the team's departure to Sri Lanka, he spoke about keeping his players motivated and that shows his ability as a successful man-manager.
"Whether they get selected for the T20 World Cup or not, that's a call the selectors will take, but being on a tour like this and playing against an international quality opposition, if you're able to put a marker and show the ability to do it at this level, the selectors will start to take note. But by no means is it a life and death kind of a situation. It doesn't mean if you don't have a good tour, you won't make it, or if you have a great tour, you'll be an automatic pick. There's a lot that goes into it."
Irrespective of the way the tour goes, there's no denying the fact that Dravid will become a frontrunner for the coaching role once Shastri's tenure comes to an end. All the cards are on his side now, and only time will tell how his coaching future pans out.