Graeme Smith backs India coach Rahul Dravid after latest WTC Final slump, urges fans to remain patient

South African cricket legend Graeme Smith has backed under-fire India coach Rahul Dravid after the latest World Test Championship (WTC) Final slump, urging Indian cricket fans to remain patient with Dravid’s process of rebuilding a new team. After India lost the second straight WTC Final, this time against Australia by 209 runs at the Oval last week, several cricket pundits and countless fans took a dig at the team boss over the poor show and team selection.

Smith, regarded as one of cricket’s greatest captains, stressed the pros and cons of being in a leadership role in Indian cricket. Having led the IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals before for a few seasons, Smith knows a thing or two about dealing with fans’ expectations and the disappointment that follows when the results are not met.

In a chat with Times of India (TOI), Smith asked the Indian fans to trust the process as Dravid is on the right course of rebuilding a team for the future.
“When you get involved in a leadership role in Indian cricket, the expectation is something that you are going to have to come to terms with. There’s a huge quality of players. India can put two or three teams together,” Smith told TOI.

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“The biggest challenge in India for a leader is balancing those squads, balancing your tour schedules, the different formats, and those are some of the biggest decisions that are coming ahead of Rahul and his selection team. What do those squads look like, how do they move those teams forward,” he added.

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Dravid replaced Ravi Shastri as India’s head coach in 2021. And after a decent start to his new career as the boss of the senior team, Dravid’s India failed to live up to the expectations, as India lost the Asia Cup, 2022 T20 World Cup and WTC Final 2023 in the span of under one year.

Dravid is a quality leader

Smith, who had played alongside Dravid in the past, showered praises on the India legend, saying he has been a quality player and has shown what he can achieve as a leader.

“He’s a quality man and a quality performer. He’s shown it right through as a coach. So, you’ve got to give him a fair opportunity now to kind of rebuild India,” Smith added.

Following the WTC Final, India has two major multi-team tournaments to participate in – Asia Cup 2023 (in Pakistan and Sri Lanka) and the home World Cup later this year. With this, Rahul Dravid will have another chance at winning an ICC trophy.

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