With India’s match against Namibia, the era of Virat Kohli’s captaincy of India’s T20 team comes to an end. There is still not confirmed if the ODI captaincy will be relinquished or not but on the test front, it seems that Kohli shall continue. The BCCI has also announced that Rahul Dravid taking over the baton of India’s head coach from Ravi Shastri. Therefore, for the time being, Rahul Dravid will coach India in all three formats and Virat Kohli will be the captain of the ODI and test team.
Virat Kohli and Rahul Dravid both have different ways of showing emotions
It would be interesting to see the working styles of the two legends of Indian cricket. Both are characteristically different in their operating styles and would have to accommodate the other’s suggestions. Kohli had a torrid time with India’s head coach before Ravi Shastri, Anil Kumble. Kumble has unceremoniously discharged off his duties.
A lot of fear that this incident may resurface between Dravid and Kohli. We look at 5 reasons why the two may not get along with each other.
1. Different Working Styles
Dravid has always been known as a calm and subdued person who is in complete control of his emotions. On the other hand, Kohli is the hot-headed cricketer who wears his emotions on his sleeve. The way they function may be a polar opposite to each other and for them to succeed as a pair, they will have to meet at a common point otherwise tensions are bound to flare up.
2. Management of Egos
Very few people understand this but the job of an Indian international men’s team coach is not to train them and upskill them. Cricketers like Kohli are already the best this country has to offer. They do not need much advice on cricketing intricacies. What they need is assistance with focusing on a goal. These cricketers today have so much adulation and following that their egos become difficult to manage. Therefore, as the coach, the first thing to do is manage the egos of these players in the team. Dravid who has coached at the junior level may find this task difficult to do especially considering how soft-natured Dravid is as an individual.
3. Different Playing Styles
Apart from having a different working style, Kohli and Dravid differ in their ways of playing the game too. Kohli is more of the “win at all costs” cricketer whereas Dravid was known to assess the situation and first protect the fort type of cricketer. Their mismatched playing style may impact the team’s outlook and result in rifts.
4. Selection Conundrum
Rahul Dravid may have preconceived plans and strategies in mind while taking over the role of the coach of the team. He may prefer certain players who he deems fit to play which may not reconcile with Kohli’s choices. Players like Sanju Samson and Ashwin have got limited chances under Kohli but that may change under Dravid and this may result in issues between the coach and captain.
5. Pressure to Deliver ICC Trophy
Under Kohli’s captaincy, India has achieved tremendous success in the overseas tests but has failed to win a single ICC tournament. Under Shastri-Kohli they have made it to the finals and semi-finals but never able to clinch it. Dravid’s first job on hand would be to fix this and he may push for radical changes to achieve this target. These changes may not reconcile with Kohli and could result in rifts between the coach and the captain.
