India vs New Zealand: Rahul Dravid explains difference in coaching U-19 and senior teams

Team India's new Head Coach Rahul Dravid on Tuesday opened up on the difference in coaching under-19 teams and the senior team ahead of the T20 series against New Zealand. India vs New Zealand 3 matches T20 series is slated to take place from November 17 at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. Rahul Dravid and Team India's new captain of T20 format Rohit Sharma on Tuesday during a joint press conference also talked about the challenges the New Zealand team brings. 

From cricket experts to fans on social media everyone has high expectations from Rahul Dravid joining Team India as their Head Coach due to his brilliant work in the NCA and as a coach of India U-19 and India A. On the same, Dravid explained the difference between coaching junior teams (Under 19 team) and senior team (Team India). 

Dravid said, "Every team has a unique set of challenges. I won't do everything I did with the U-19 team out here. You have to mould yourself to get the best out of a player."

The former Indian cricketer also talked about the idea of specialised teams for Tests and limited-overs format. Dravid said, "We are not looking at having separate teams. Of course, there are individuals who play only in certain formats. We must look at players' mental health... these are challenging times, especially for those who play every format. I will certainly look at this."

"You have to strike a balance... you cannot neglect the long-term future of players and their mental health. You have to focus on winning now but you also have to look at the long-term effects. Striking a balance is important... that's my job as a coach," added Dravid. 

India vs New Zealand T20I and Test series

India will start the T20I series with New Zealand and then will lock horns with two test matches. While, the T20Is will be played on November 17 in Jaipur, November 19 in Ranchi, and November 21 in Kolkata, the two tests will be played in Kanpur's Green Park Stadium between November 25-29 and in Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium between December 3-7.

BCCI on Friday announced a 16-member squad for the upcoming bilateral series against New Zealand. India's Test vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane has been named the skipper of the side for the first Test match in absence of regular captain Virat Kohli, who will directly join the team for the second Test match in Mumbai. The last time when Kohli was rested and Rahane took over as captain, Rohit Sharma was named the vice-captain of Team India in Test matches. However, in the absence of both Kohli and Rohit, Cheteshwar Pujara has been appointed the new vice-captain of the Test side.  

Apart from Kohli and Rohit, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, and Rishabh Pant are some of the notable names missing from the squad. Meanwhile, Shreyas Iyer and Prasidh Krishna have received their maiden Test call-up for the series against the Blackcaps. Karnataka cricketer KS Bharat has been included in the squad as a reserve wicketkeeper-batter in place Pant. Jayant Yadav, who has played 4 Test matches for India, has also found a place in the 16-member squad for the New Zealand series. Karnataka batter Mayank Agarwal, who was not part of the Test series against England, has been given a place in the squad.

Image: BCCI/Twitter