Head coach Rahul Dravid didn’t let the world in with his favorite side for the opening test against South Africa, but said Indian players were “professional” when it came to handling “difficult conversations” about their place on the side. As India geared up for the ‘Boxing Day’ test against one of the most exhausted South African teams in recent times, Dravid said it’s okay for players to be disappointed they weren’t chosen as it shows they care and hungry to be in the middle of the action. The context was what kind of conversations he has with older players like Ishant Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane, who might be overlooked in the Centurion test.
“I think the guys have been really good at it and I think most of the players are professionals. I mean, of course, sometimes you have to have difficult conversations with players and with difficult you know what I mean, telling every player he’s not It’s hard because everyone wants to play and be part of eleven,” Dravid said on Saturday.
The batter believed that most older players made difficult decisions on their own at some level, such as captaining first-class teams or being part of a leadership group.
“They understand situations and not the first time, they had been in this kind of situation and some of them have high positions in their state teams and they are part of decision-making groups where they leave people out.
“And some of them might be in leadership positions and some of them are part of senior leadership groups that make decisions like that, so they understand and as long as they know the reason and we can communicate about it,” the Wall said.
Disappointment is sometimes a good thing, as it keeps the fire alive in a player, said India’s second-highest go-getter in Test cricket. But when a tough decision is made, a player must make it in the right spirit.
“I don’t want everyone to be disappointed because that’s one of the reasons people succeed at this level. You want to play, you want to participate, you don’t want to sit outside.
“But how you take that when you’re sitting outside and how you react to that is really a test of your attitude. So far I’ve had no complaints and everyone has been fantastic about it,” said the head coach.
For Dravid, any decision about playing XI would be based on the circumstances and the opposition’s preferred combination rather than “get carried away”.
“We have real quality in our squad. Obviously we have to make a decision and only play XI and we have to call, but it’s just the way it is.
“But we don’t get carried away and make decisions. We’ve had very good conversations within the roster for the tour and some healthy discussions about what we think is the best XI that gives us the best chance of doing a test series.” win in South Africa,” added the coach.
When asked if he found this current South African attack a bit “casual” (the writer meant weak), Dravid was quick to refute that opinion, even though the home side won’t have the fiery pace of Anrich Nortje to keep Kagiso Rabada to supplement.
“Don’t think this attack is a coincidence (weak), but I agree with you that our attack at the moment is definitely more experienced than the attack in South Africa, given the number of friendlies played,” he said. thought.
“…And it may not have been the case in the past, but they have quality and some very good bowlers (Duanne Oliver) in home conditions and also some proven performers (Rabada).
“We certainly won’t take them casually or lightly and we have a match on our hands and we know we have to put in some sort of score that will help our bowlers take 20 wickets. There will be a period in the Test series where we will have to fighting really hard.”
Mayank Agarwal had recently said that Dravid works a lot on the mental aspect of each player.
“Hope, I’m not really screwing them up (laughs),” he laughed.
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“At this level, a lot of chat and conversation is about keeping them in good headroom and keeping them relaxed.” Dravid said conditions can be “challenging,” the bounce can be steeper and slower, and the pitch gets faster on days three and four. And it can go up and down on day five.
“It’s rare in a series like this that one person scores in every game. I’d love to see that happen on our part, but I know everyone has to contribute. That’s what we’re focused on and not one or two.” people,” he said.
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