Rahul Dravid set to return to Rajasthan Royals as head coach: Report

Rahul Dravid is set to return to the Rajasthan Royals (RR) as their head coach a little over two months after his tenure with the Indian team came to an end.

The 51-year-old thus returns to the franchise that he had previously captained in the 2012 and 2013 seasons of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and had mentored in 2014 and 2015. According to ESPNCricinfo, Dravid not only has signed a deal with the Jaipur-based franchise, he is also being consulted on their player retentions ahead of the mega auction for the 2025 season.

While Dravid will take over coaching duties, Kumar Sangakkara, who has been RR’s Director of Cricket since 2021, will continue with the franchise and look after Royals’ teams in SA20 and the Caribbean Premier League.

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The Royals are also likely to sign Vikram Rathour, whose term as India batting coach also ended after the T20 World Cup, as one of Dravid’s assistants.

Dravid will reunite with captain Sanju Samson, who had come through the ranks under his watch. RR will also be hoping his return helps them land their first title since they won the inaugural edition under the leadership of the late Shane Warne.

The former India captain returns to the IPL after a two-and-a-half-year stint with the Indian team that concluded with the Rohit Sharma-led side winning the T20 World Cup in the US and the Caribbean — their first ICC title since the 2013 Champions Trophy.

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During Dravid’s reign, Team India had also stormed into the final of last year’s ODI World Cup at home with 10 wins in as many outings, only to lose the final against Australia in Ahmedabad. The former India captain also helped India reach the semi-finals of the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia and win the 2023 Asia Cup besides winning key Test assignments against Australia (2-1) and England (4-1) at home.

Dravid’s tenure was originally supposed to conclude at the end of the 2023 ODI World Cup but was extended till the 2024 T20 World Cup, after which he did not reapply for the post. He was succeeded by former India opener and Kolkata Knight Riders mentor Gautam Gambhir.

After parting ways with the Royals, Dravid had mentored the Delhi Capitals (then Daredevils) in 2016. he would later coach the India U-19 and India ‘A’ teams and would be appointed head of the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru in 2019.