Ravi Shastri Reveals Reason Behind Facing Two World Cup Heartbreaks During His Tenure As A Coach

Former Indian player Ravi Shastri pointed out an important factor that cost India two World Cup trophies. Shastri was the head coach of the Indian national cricket team, taking over the duties from Anil Kumble in 2017 and remained in the role until ICC T20 World Cup 2021 last year in UAE.

Shastri might not have achieved an ICC trophy during his tenure, but definitely, he has revamped India’s Test structure, especially on overseas tours. For the first time, India won a Test series in Down Under in 2018/19 and followed their success in 2020/21.

Ravi Shastri’s tenure missed ICC trophies

It wasn’t only Shastri’s tenure end but also Virat Kohli’s final days as India captain. Kohli had already announced his decision to quit T20I captaincy at the end of the tournament. Things got worse when he was snubbed from ODI captaincy and very soon relinquished the Test leadership as well after the series loss in South Africa.

Under the Kohli-Shastri duo, India reached the final of the 2017 Champions Trophy and the semi-finals of the 2019 World Cup in England. India’s back-to-back defeats against Pakistan and New Zealand in the group stage of the T20 World Cup cost them a place in the semis.

Always wanted a guy who could bowl in top-6: Ravi Shastri

All-rounder Hardik Pandya wasn’t fit to bowl in UAE and didn’t bowl for the major part of the tournament. He purely played as a batting finisher lower down the order.

“I have always wanted a guy who could bowl in top-6. And with Hardik getting injured, it became a massive problem. And it cost India. It cost India a couple of World Cups. Because we didn’t have anyone who could bowl in the top six. So, that was a liability. We told the selectors, ‘look for someone’. But then, who is there?” Shastri said on FanCode.

India will play in the T20 World Cup 2022 as they have been paired with Pakistan, South Africa and Bangladesh in Group 2 for the league stage.

Also Read: Hardik Pandya May Not Play ODI Cricket After The 2023 World Cup: Ravi Shastri