New Delhi: Former team India bowling coach Paras Mhambrey opens up on his experience of working with Rahul Dravid and skipper Rohit Sharma. Mhambrey played a pivotal role in the Indian coaching staff that helped team India in lifting an ICC title after 11 years.
Paras Mhambrey joined the Indian cricket team from late 2021 and his last assignment as India’s bowling coach was T20 World Cup 2024. Interestingly, He also worked with Rahul Dravid at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) before joining the national team.
Gautam Gambhir takes over the change of the Indian team as head coach during the white-ball tour of Sri Lanka, which is set to begin on July 27. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is yet to finalize the bowling coach. Abhishek Nayar and Ryan ten Doeschate have been appointed as assistant coaches.
Mhambrey said that he worked with Rahul Dravid across various projects, including India A, U19s, the NCA and then the senior team. Mhambrey revealed that Dravid preferred to stay in the background to give space to players and captain to be in the forefront.
“My association with Rahul is a long one. I worked with him for India A, U19s, NCA and then finally Team India. That’s eight-nine years of interaction and understanding what the requirements are, what the vision is. I knew what Rahul wanted. As a coach, Rahul was never in front, he was always behind (the players),” Mhambrey said.
“That speaks a lot about the individual himself. A lot of focus was on the players. It’s all about the players, never about him. He never liked to take credit. You always see him in the background. A legend of a game. But to be able to say that, okay, I’m going to take a backseat and allow the captain and the team to be in the forefront, it’s phenomenal,” he added.
Paras Mhambrey shared that he had previously worked with Rohit Sharma during their time with the Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He emphasized that Rohit was deeply involved in the team dynamics, attending every meeting diligently. Mhambrey also revealed a light-hearted anecdote, mentioning that Rohit’s wife used to refer to Rahul Dravid as Rohit’s “work wife.”
Rahul Dravid was appointed as the head coach of the Indian men’s cricket team following the T20 World Cup 2021. Under his guidance, the team reached the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup 2022, the finals of the ODI World Cup 2023, and the World Test Championship (WTC). Despite these achievements, the team was unable to clinch the title in any of these ICC tournaments.
The BCCI decided to extend Dravid’s tenure until the T20 World Cup 2024, set to be held in the West Indies and the USA. The 51-year-old ended his coaching stint on a high note by winning the trophy, a remarkable achievement considering he never won an ICC trophy as a player. After this triumph, Dravid chose not to apply for a second term as head coach.
