Former India all-rounder Robin Singh, who applied for the coveted position of Indian coach, said retired cricketer Ambati Rayudu and Ajinkya Rahane would have been in his team, had he were the India coach.
Talking about the much-debated No. 4 batting spot, Robin told The Hindu that India should have groomed a No. 4 batsman for the World Cup and added, “Both Ambati Rayudu and Ajinkya Rahane would have been there in my team.”
“Under the current coach, India has lost in the semifinals of two successive ODI World Cups, and in the last four stage of the World Twenty20 championship as well. Now is the time to prepare for the 2023 World Cup and a change could be good for the side,” said Robin.
Notably, Indian team, which ended the World Cup 2019 league table as toppers, were outplayed by New Zealand in the semi-finals while chasing a 240-run target. Asked how he would have handled the chase against New Zealand in the World Cup semi-final, Robin said that he would have held back Virat Kohli to the No. 4 slot, after losing Rohit Sharma early. Meanwhile, the all-rounder also mentioned that he would have picked another top-order batsman, Mayank Agarwal, at No 3 and would have sent MS Dhoni at No. 5, so that Dhoni could have got more time.
Robin had earlier worked as the fielding coach of Team India from 2007 to 2009. In fact, Robin and bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad were managing the Indian team in the interim before Gary Kirsten took over as full-time coach after the resignation of Greg Chappell.