The combination of captain Virat Kohli and coach Ravi Shastri has done wonders for the Indian team that reigned supreme at the peak of the ICC Test team rankings for a long time. Taking over full-time in 2017, Shastri had forged a brilliant partnership with Kohli and helped the Indian team turn into a dominating unit.
Both the players are firebrands in themselves, with Shastri known to speak his mind and Kohli is as aggressive as a player can get. However despite combustible natures, the two complement each other well, given the mutual respect they have for one another, feels former Australia opener Michael Slater.
Shastri and Kohli are both fiery characters who like to challenge themselves, Slater felt.
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“Ravi and Virat probably challenge each other enough but there is such respect between them that it works. If Ravi is nodding his head when Virat is speaking and vice versa, the rest of them even if they don’t agree would be nodding their heads," Slater said on Star Sports' show Cricket Connected.
"Both of them have their hearts on their sleeves. I have worked with Ravi for so long in the commentary box, so I have got to know him and he was one of my great mates when we worked together. He is a big personality. But obviously there are subtle differences that allow them to really work well together. But it has been a great synergy and a great relationship and I think it has helped Indian cricket’s tempo,” Slater said.
Shastri’s tenure was extended by two years after the World Cup 2019 until the T20 World Cup to be hosted by India in 2021.
Former India pacer Ashish Nehra, who has seen the duo work from close quarters, revealed what makes them gel so well.
"Ravi Shastri gives Virat Kohli space that he needs. Virat Kohli knows the type of person Ravi Shastri is and what can be extracted from him. Both of them are similar personalities. It's not that all the time, you have to agree on things. Few things you have to let go. It's not like the captain is the last decision-maker or the coach. For me, it has to be the 50-50 partnership," Nehra said.
