Vijay Shankar Credits Rahul Dravid For Adding Confidence to his Bag

Another young budding cricketer credits Under-19 and India A coach Rahul Dravid for giving him confidence. India’s rookie all-rounder Vijay Shankar has given credit to Rahul Dravid for adding confidence to his bag. Shankar said Rahul Dravid told him that he has the shots as well as the temperament to be a finisher.

Subsequently, Shankar backed himself to go all the way. He was able to turn the tables in his favor after having a disastrous Nidahas Trophy final where he had almost messed it up. Shankar got his chance to play under the tutelage of Rahul Dravid for India A.

Rahul Dravid – India’s Cricketers Producing Machine.

The right-handed all-rounder from Tamil Nadu scored two knocks of 87 and 59 runs in the run chase against New Zealand A which helped to believe in his abilities.

Meanwhile, Shankar shared the incident when he met Rahul Dravid for the first time in 2012 and tried to impress him in the first meeting.

“The first time I met Rahul sir was before a TNCA club match (for Vijay CC) in Chennai in 2012, he was then my idol and I was so nervous that I literally froze in the dressing room,” Shankar told The Indian Express.

“Two days later, we were batting together in the middle and like all youngsters, I wanted to impress him. So I played a couple of extravagant strokes, and he immediately advised me: ‘We have plenty of time, so pace your innings and I want you to finish the innings.”

Shankar said he lost the confidence after he could not hit the ground running in the Nidahas Trophy final. However, Rahul Dravid once again helped him in getting back on to the right path.

The two good knocks against New Zealand A helped Shankar in regaining his confidence. Thus, the right-hander believed that he can deliver the goods at the topmost level.

“I had lost a bit of confidence batting in limited-over matches, after the Nidahas Trophy final. But he [Dravid] put me at ease, told me that I have the shots and temperament to be a finisher. And he told me that he’ll send me at No 5, which he did in the first match [vs New Zealand A], when we were chasing around 300,” Shankar said.

He further added, “I scored an unbeaten 87 and we won the match. The innings really cleared the self-doubts, and in the next match, I scored a 59 in another chase of 300. Now I’m very confident about my batting in limited-over matches. I have better situational awareness and clarity of mind.”

Meanwhile, Vijay Shankar impressed with the bat in the chances in received in the three-match T20I series against New Zealand. However, he didn’t get a chance to bowl. Consequently, Shankar has put himself in contention for the World Cup as a back-up all-rounder to Hardik Pandya.