Ravi Shastri has hailed India’s victory over England in the third Test as the side’s best overseas performance in recent times.
“In the four years I’ve been doing this job (working with the senior team in some capacity) — if you look at a clinical performance overseas, I think this has to be the best,” India’s head coach said here on Wednesday.
“Because South Africa (the third Test) was gutsy, because that was a nasty track when we won in Johannesburg. But this was clinical. When you look at all three departments, they stood up. As a batting unit, as a catching unit and as a bowling unit, so you can’t ask for more.”
Mental rest
He had prescribed the team “mental rest” and “very little practice” after the second Test, Shastri said, claiming that he was not aware of any criticism from back home. “Was there a backlash at home? Because we don’t read what’s written back home. Yes, we were disappointed because we ran England close in the first Test, we were blown away at Lord’s, and we needed to prove a point.
“All I asked the boys was to give me some accountability and they were simply magnificent in all three departments of the game. As a head coach, I can’t ask for more. [My message was:] ‘Clear your heads, and show me some accountability.’ I’m just proud of the guys,” Shastri said.
India was close to being the “best travelling team” in the world, Shastri stated. “The bottom line with this team is there’s not a negative bone in the body, because they believe they can win anywhere in the world. The endeavour of this team is to be the best travelling team in the world. And I believe they’re almost there.
“In India, we know what we can do. Especially if we play in conditions that suit us, very few teams will have a sniff. But to go to South Africa, England, Australia and try and win there, that’s the endeavour of this team and they have it in them.”
India’s fast bowlers, who claimed 19 of the 20 wickets to fall here and comfortably outperformed their English counterparts, were the best set the national team had ever had, he felt. “[This is India’s best pace attack] by a mile. By a mile. No team comes even close.”
Only once in history has a team overturned a 2-0 deficit to win a five-match series — Don Bradman’s Ashes team of 1936-37. But Shastri would not hear of it. “1936-37 — I wasn’t even born, man. Why are you reminding me of 36-37?” he asked.
“One match at a time, we live in the present. One game at a time. Nottingham is over, there’s a break and we move to Southampton and start afresh. Take a fresh guard. [This is] 2018.”
