Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar has not only backed under-fire skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni but also gave the thumbs up to BCCI’s new move of appointing Ravi Shastri as the Team Director.
“He has led from the front. He has batted at difficult positions. He has set an example. If his example has not been followed by the rest of the team, I don’t think you can blame the captain.
“I don’t think there is any alternative to Dhoni in the foreseeable future and I would back him to carry on,” Gavaskar told NDTV. Gavaskar is happy with the changes in the support staff.
“I think the fact that they have appointed coaches, assistant coaches, who have real interest in Indian cricket as against a commercial interest of maybe somebody else, they will have an impact.
“Mind you they will not have an immediate bearing. This is not instant coffee. So you just have to be a little more patient,” said Gavaskar.
“But having coaches who have sweated on Indian cricket fields will make a huge difference — particularly in communication with the players because communication is very important.
“There are a lot of our players who might not be able to understand the language spoken by the non-Indians. So the fact that we have now Indian assistant coaches will make a huge difference,” he added.
Reacting to reports, which mention that coach Duncan Fletcher’s day’s may be numbered in India and the Englishman may lose his job before the West Indies series, Gavaskar said that he has little interest in what the veteran coach may be thinking.
“I would not put myself in Duncan Fletcher’s shoes. I wouldn’t even bother to try and go into his mind what is he thinking because I am just not interested in what he thinks.
“I was interested in what he does. I had made my views very clear on his coaching abilities a long time ago. And I won’t go further into this,” said Gavaskar.
Gavaskar also made a point on the many critics and fans who will always question the developments in Indian cricket. “There is nothing that will actually satisfy a cricket lover. Whatever you do the Indian cricket lover will have a question.”
“You appoint Shastri there will be a question. You sack the coaches there will be a question, why before the one-dayers? India does well in ODIs, so why that?
