Former Indian cricket team head coach Ravi Shastri always likes to express his emotions through his words. Team India scaled new heights under his coaching, especially in the longest format. The Men in Blue even reached the semi-finals of the 50-over World Cup 2019 under him. The Indian team got the best fast bowling attack under his coaching.
Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma, and Umesh Yadav started performing really well in the overseas Test tours. Former Indian fielding coach, R Sridhar in his recently released book “Coaching Beyond: My days with the Indian Cricket Team,” recalled a moment when Shastri scolded the Indian fast bowlers during the 2018 South Africa Test series.
“We were in South Africa in early 2018, for the first Test in Cape Town. Within half an hour of the start of the game, Bhuvneshwar reduced them to 12/3, dismissing Dean Elgar, Aiden Markram and Hashim Amla. Then we bowled like millionaires and they ended up making 286. That evening, Ravi summoned the pace attack (Bhuvi, Shami, Bumrah and Hardik) and thundered, ‘What’s this rubbish? I have seen so much driving in the middle that I am sick of it. From this point on, whatever driving happens must be only on the road. No bloody half-volleys, get stuck into them’,” Sridhar, the former fielding coach wrote.
I don’t want to see a ball pitched up under the nose: Ravi Shastri
Shastri himself talked about the incident during a show on Star Sports. Despite getting the early breakthrough, Indian bowlers let the Proteas make a comeback as AB de Villiers and skipper Faf du Plessis smashed half-centuries. However, Shastri’s words worked for the bowlers as they bundled up the South Africans on 130 in the second innings.
“In the first innings, we had a reasonable Day 1. We picked up three wickets, and then bowled a lot of nonsense after lunch. South Africa recovered and reached 200, in spite of what we dished out. The next morning, we pulled the bowlers in and in no uncertain terms told them ‘Keep your driving license at home’. I said I don’t want to see a ball pitched up under the nose,” he had said on the show ‘Bold and Brave: The Shastri Way’ on Star Sports.
