Rahul Dravid stays as India head coach: Conquering final frontier in South Africa and other challenges that lie ahead

The drama surrounding Rahul Dravid’s future as head coach of the Indian cricket team turned out to be a short-lived one with the BCCI offering him and the rest of the support staff an extension on Wednesday. Dravid’s contract as the head coach had expired a day after India suffered a heartbreaking defeat at the hands of Australia in the World Cup final that prolonged their decade-long wait for an ICC trophy. The former India captain had refused to answer directly when quizzed about his desire to continue in the role in the press conference after the World Cup final. Dravid’s silence on the matter led to speculations of him bowing out of the job and either joining one of the franchises in the Indian Premier League or taking a break from coaching duties for the time being. There were also rumours of National Cricket Academy Head of Cricket VVS Laxman taking over the role full-time after filling in for Dravid on a couple of assignments. Dravid, however, is here to stay for now, and though the BCCI has not made public the exact details of his contract extension, it is assumed that he will be around at least till next year’s T20 World Cup in the Caribbean and the United States. The former India captain had succeeded Ravi Shastri in the role following the conclusion of the 2021 T20 World Cup, and would go on to form a largely successful pairing with Rohit Sharma, who would replace Virat Kohli as the captain around the same time. India would reach the semi-finals of the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia besides finishing runners-up in World Test Championship Final and in the ICC World Cup on home soil, and would also win the 2023 Asia Cup in dominant fashion. Read | Lot of emotions in Indian dressing room. Tough to see as a coach': Dravid And with his contract officially getting renewed, Dravid faces fresh hurdles on the road ahead. Here’s a detailed look at some of the challenges that he faces in the second phase of his run as head coach: Conquering the final frontier in South Africa India are yet to win a Test series in South Africa despite having been the more consistent side in recent years. The closest they have come to conquering the ‘Final Frontier’ was in 2010-11 when the MS Dhoni-led side held the Proteas to a 1-1 draw. More recently, Virat Kohli’s India were 1-0 up after a commanding victory in Centurion during the 2021-22 tour, only to lose the next two matches in Johannesburg and Cape Town. [caption id=“attachment_10283651” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Virat Kohli-led India lost the three-Test series in their 2021-22 tour of South Africa despite going 1-0 up. AP[/caption] With the World Cup behind him, the upcoming tour of South Africa — where the Indians play Tests in Centurion and Cape Town besides three ODIs and as many T20Is — will be the first big priority. Pulling off what past Indians failed to achieve will further solidify Dravid’s legacy as head coach the way the Test series wins in Australia did for Ravi Shastri. Stopping the Bazball juggernaut at home Beating England in a home Test series isn’t exactly a rare feat for the Indians. They have, after all, lost one assignment against the Englishmen since 1985. The last two Test series’ involving these two teams on Indian soil ended 4-0 and 3-1 respectively in favour of the home team and the odds will be heavily favouring the Rohit Sharma-led side to come out on top once again in the five-Test series that takes place between January and March next year. [caption id=“attachment_11713811” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] England will be touring India for the first time since Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes took over as coach and captain respectively in the Test format. Image credit: Twitter/@englandcricket[/caption] Except this will be the first time India host England in a Test series in the ‘Bazball’ Era. England have undergone a revolution of sorts since Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes came on board as head coach and skipper respectively in the Test format, and the team are yet to lose a series since the summer of 2022. And it’s not just at home — England blanked Pakistan 3-0 in a Test series last year, and will certainly back themselves to beat India in India for the first time since 2011-12. Ending the ICC trophy drought next summer India’s decade-long hunt for an ICC trophy continues, with the Men in Blue falling short in the final hurdle twice this year — losing to Australia in the final of the World Test Championship as well as the ICC World Cup. Dravid, however, will have little time to dwell on the defeats with another major event looming next year. The ninth edition of the ICC T20 World Cup takes place next year and will be jointly hosted by West Indies and USA, and it will be a chance for Dravid to finally add some silverware to India’s cabinet during his reign beside the Asia Cup won in September. And after working with Rohit during the 2022 T20 World Cup as well as the WTC Final and World Cup, Dravid will be working with Hardik Pandya in the Caribbean next year, given the all-rounder has unofficially replaced the ‘Hitman’ as captain in the shortest format. India will enter the tournament as favourites as always, but Dravid and Pandya will hope the Men in Blue produce the kind of dominant performance that they’re capable of in the most important fixture of them all, and not just during the league stage.