Ravishankar Jayadritha Shastri (born 27 May 1962) is an Indian
cricket
Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...
commentator, former professional cricketer and
head coach
A head coach, senior coach, or manager is a professional responsible for training and developing athletes within a sports team. This role often has a higher public profile and salary than other coaching positions. In some sports, such as associat ...
of the
India national cricket team
The India men's national cricket team, also known as Men in Blue, represents India in international cricket. It is governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India and is a full member nation of the International Cricket Council with ...
. As a player, he played for the
India national cricket team
The India men's national cricket team, also known as Men in Blue, represents India in international cricket. It is governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India and is a full member nation of the International Cricket Council with ...
between 1981 and 1992 in both
Test matches and
One Day International
One Day International (ODI) is a format of cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of fifty overs, with the game lasting up to 7 hours. The World Cup, generally held every four yea ...
s. Although he started his career as a
left arm spin bowler, he later transformed into a batting
all-rounder
An all-rounder is a cricketer who regularly performs well at both batting and bowling. Although all bowlers must bat and quite a handful of batsmen do bowl occasionally, most players are skilled in only one of the two disciplines and are cons ...
. Shastri was a member of the Indian team that won the
1983 Cricket World Cup
The 1983 Cricket World Cup (officially the Prudential Cup '83) was the third edition of the Cricket World Cup tournament. It was held from 9 to 25 June 1983 in England and Wales and was won by India
India, officially the Republic o ...
. He won the
C. K. Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award at the Indian cricket team annual award show NAMAN in 2024.
As a cricketer, Shastri was essentially defensive with his trademark "chapathi"
(a
flick off the pads), but he could raise his
strike rate
Strike rate refers to two different cricket statistics, statistics in the sport of cricket. Batting strike rate is a measure of how quickly a batsman, batter achieves the primary goal of batting (cricket), batting, namely scoring run (cricket), r ...
when required. Due to his above-average height (he stood 6' 3" tall) and an upright stance, he had a limited number of shots against
fast bowling
Fast bowling (also referred to as pace bowling) is a type of bowling in cricket, in which the ball is delivered at high speed. The fastest bowlers bowl the ball at over . Practitioners of fast bowling are known as fast bowlers or quicks. Also ...
, but was able to put the lofted shot to good use against
spin bowling
Spin bowling is a bowling (cricket), bowling technique in cricket, in which the ball is Delivery (cricket), delivered relatively slowly but with rapid rotation, giving it the potential to deviate sharply after bouncing. A bowler who uses this t ...
. Ravi played either as an opening batsman or in the middle order.
The highlight of his career was when he was elected Champion of Champions in the
World Championship of Cricket in Australia in 1985. In the same season, on 10 January 1985, he equaled
West Indian
A West Indian is a native or inhabitant of the West Indies (the Antilles and the Lucayan Archipelago). According to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED''), the term ''West Indian'' in 1597 described the indigenous inhabitants of the West In ...
Garry Sobers's record of hitting six
sixes in an
over in
first class cricket
First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is of three or more days scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officially adju ...
. He was regarded as a potential captain, but his image outside cricket,
[Raju Bharatan, "Ravi Shastri : Always 'on the ball'", Special Portrait, ''Indian Cricket 2002''.] injuries and tendency to lose form at crucial times meant that he captained India in only one Test match.
In domestic cricket, he played for
Bombay
Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...
and led them to the
Ranji Trophy
The Ranji Trophy is a premier domestic first-class cricket championship played in India and organized annually by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The teams representing regional and state cricket associations participate. BCCI ...
title in his final year of playing. He also played four seasons of
county cricket
Inter-county cricket matches have been played since the early 18th century, involving teams that are representative of the historic counties of England and Wales.
Two county championship competitions have existed since the late 19th century at ...
for
Glamorgan
Glamorgan (), or sometimes Glamorganshire ( or ), was Historic counties of Wales, one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It is located in the South Wales, south of Wales. Originally an ea ...
. He was forced to retire aged 31 due to a recurring knee injury. He has done commentary on behalf of BCCI in the matches that India play. In 2014, he became the director of Indian cricket team for a period of eight months from India's tour of England until the
2015 World Cup. On 13 July 2017, he was appointed as the head coach of Indian cricket team. On 16 August 2019, he was re-appointed as the head coach of the senior men's Indian team and remained in charge until the
2021 ICC T20 World Cup.
Personal life
Ravi Shastri is of
Mangalorean
Mangaloreans ( Tulu: ''Kudladaklu''; Kannada: ''Mangaloorinavaruu''; Konkani: ''Kodialkar''; Beary: ''Maikaltanga''; Urdu: ''Kaudalvale'') are a collection of diverse ethnic groups that hail from the historical locales of South Canara ( Tuluna ...
descent, was born in Bombay and studied at
Don Bosco High School. As a teenager, he took to cricket seriously. Playing for Don Bosco (Matunga), Shastri reached the final of the 1976 inter-school Giles Shield, finally losing to St Mary's, whose lineup included two future
Ranji players, Shishir Hattiangadi and Jignesh Sanghani. The next year, under Shastri's captaincy, Don Bosco won the Giles Shield in 1977, the first time in the history of that school. At school, his coach was B. D. Desai, once a Tatas and Dadar Union player. While Don Bosco was not traditionally a major force in schools cricket, the
R. A. Podar College, where Shastri later studied
commerce
Commerce is the organized Complex system, system of activities, functions, procedures and institutions that directly or indirectly contribute to the smooth, unhindered large-scale exchange (distribution through Financial transaction, transactiona ...
, produced many good cricketers. Vasant Amladi and, in particular, V. S. "Marshall" Patil, were integral figures in Shastri's development as a cricketer.
When not in Mumbai, Shastri lives in
Alibaug.
On 18 March 1990, Shastri married Ritu Singh. They have one daughter named Alekha Shastri. After 22 years of marriage, Shastri filed for divorce.
Domestic career
In his last year at the junior college, he was selected to represent the
Bombay
Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...
team in the Ranji Trophy.
[Javed Akhtar, ''The Young Veteran'', Interview with Ravi Shastri, ''World of Cricket'', April 1986] At 17 years and 292 days, he was then the youngest cricketer to play for Bombay.

An Indian under-19 team was scheduled to tour Pakistan in 1980–81. Shastri was included in the coaching camp at the last minute by the National Coach
Hemu Adhikari. Shastri captained one of the two teams in a trial game and was then asked to lead the Indian Under-19 team. The tour, however, was cancelled. The team later went to Sri Lanka, but the games were frequently interrupted by rain.
His only notable achievement in his first two Ranji seasons were bowling figures of 6-61, which he took against Delhi in the 1979–80 Ranji final that Bombay lost. While he was playing against Uttar Pradesh at
Kanpur
Kanpur (Hindustani language, Hindustani: ), originally named Kanhapur and formerly anglicized as Cawnpore, is the second largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Uttar Pradesh after Lucknow. It was the primary ...
in the next season, he was called up to the squad touring New Zealand to stand in for the injured left arm spinner
Dilip Doshi. Shastri arrived in
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...
the night before the first Test. His first over in Test cricket was a maiden to the New Zealand captain
Geoff Howarth. In the second innings, he took 3 wickets in four balls, all to catches by
Dilip Vengsarkar, to bring a quick close to the
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
innings. In the third Test, his seven
wicket
In the sport of cricket, the term wicket has several meanings:
* It is either of the two sets of three Stump (cricket), stumps and two Bail (cricket), bails at each end of the Cricket pitch, pitch. The Fielding (cricket), fielding team's playe ...
s won him the man of the match award, while his 15 wickets in the series were the highest for either side.
The Ranji final of 1984/85 turned out to be one of the finest matches in Indian domestic cricket history. A sleepy Gavaskar won the toss and batted. He could hardly close his eyes before Bombay was 3 down for 42. Batting at No.5, he scored his 20th and last Ranji Trophy hundred and took Bombay to 333. Shastri made 29 before he was bowled attempting to cut an
arm–ball. Delhi was in early trouble before they were rescued by
Chetan Chauhan, batting with a fractured finger in his last first class match.
Ajay Sharma
Ajay Kumar Sharma () (born 3 April 1964) is a former Indian cricketer.
Sharma was a prolific run-maker in first-class cricket, mainly for Delhi, scoring over 10,000 runs, at an average of 67.46. He was a part of the Indian squad which won the ...
, in his first season, scored a hundred and took Delhi into the lead with nine wickets down.
The rules of the competition specified that in the event of a draw, the team with the first innings lead would be declared the winners. With two days and 100 minutes left, Bombay went for quick runs. A crowd of about 46,000 turned up for match on the fourth day and the organizers ran out of tickets. Shastri top scored with 76 as Bombay set Delhi 300 to win in a day and ninety minutes.
Except for the odd delivery, the ball spun slowly and afforded enough time for the batsmen to play their strokes. Early on the final day, Delhi reached 95 for no loss and then collapsed. His first wicket was Chauhan who was declared out caught behind with the ball having spun across the face of the bat without apparently touching it. The match changed dramatically and the batsmen lost their head.
Gursharan Singh was lbw playing no stroke,
Kirti Azad played on,
Surinder Khanna was stumped after a few slogs. Shastri took 8 for 91; Bombay won by 90 runs. In the 50th year of Ranji trophy, it was their 30th title.
[Ayaz Memon, "Bombay pull off a remarkable win", ''Sportsweek'', 17–23 April 1985]
After the tour of Australia in 1985–86, he also began to decline as a bowler. Bombay lost to Haryana in the semifinal of the Ranji trophy but West Zone won the
Duleep Trophy. His major contribution was as a bowler in the semifinal against North Zone on a flat wicket at Trivandrum. Like in the Ranji final, North looked the likely winner going into the last day, before he took 8 for 145.
He scored hundreds in the quarterfinal and semifinal of the Duleep trophy, but West Zone lost to South on first innings lead in the latter match. Shastri's only other score over fifty in the season was a particularly dull 125 against Pakistan in the
Jaipur
Jaipur (; , ) is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the List of cities and towns in Rajasthan, largest city of the north-western States and union territories of India, Indian state of Rajasthan. , the city had ...
Test. He did well enough to be the man of the one day series. In the first one-day match against Pakistan he captained India for the first time, scoring 50 and taking three wickets. He took four wickets at Calcutta and 69* at
Hyderabad
Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...
in two thrilling finishes. Later at
Nagpur
Nagpur (; ISO 15919, ISO: ''Nāgapura'') is the second capital and third-largest city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is called the heart of India because of its central geographical location. It is the largest and most populated city i ...
with India facing a big target, he scored 52 in 40 balls.
In 1987,
Glamorgan
Glamorgan (), or sometimes Glamorganshire ( or ), was Historic counties of Wales, one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It is located in the South Wales, south of Wales. Originally an ea ...
contracted Shastri to play for them. He stayed with them until 1991, with a break in 1990 due to India's tour of England. Shastri's presence did little for the fortunes of the county which finished at the bottom of the first class table in two of those seasons. Shastri topped 1000 runs in 1989 and scored hundreds in both innings against
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...
. His best bowling performance of 7 for 49 (11 for 90) in the match came against Lancashire in 1988, where he got bounce and turn and was 'unplayable' according to Wisden. The almanack noticed that Shastri was already becoming reluctant to bowl.
1988 was by far the best of the seasons for Glamorgan in one day matches. They finished 5th in the Sunday League – up from 14 in 1987 – and reached the semifinal of the Benson & Hedges Cup. Shastri won the leading six hitter award for the Sunday league matches of 1988 with 14 sixes. He was part of the
MCC team that played a Rest of the World team in the MCC bicentennial match at
Lord's
Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket List of Test cricket grounds, venue in St John's Wood, Westminster. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex C ...
in 1987.
Bombay breezed through the West Zone league of the 1993–94 Ranji Trophy winning all four matches – a very rare feat – by big margins. With the Test players away, Shastri captained the young team in the knockout matches. Bombay defeated Haryana by an innings and 202 runs in the pre quarter final but ran into trouble against Karnataka in the next round. Against 406, Bombay lost their first six for 174, before Shastri and
Sairaj Bahutule added 259 in six hours. Shastri's individual score was 151. Bombay survived the best part of the last day to win on first innings lead. Shastri scored 612 runs in the season and took 17 wickets at 15. Bombay went on to beat Bengal in a low scoring final to lift the Ranji Trophy. It was their first championship since the famous win against Delhi nine years ago.
In September 1994, while in
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
covering the Singer World Series, Shastri announced his retirement from first class cricket.
International career
Early days
Within eighteen months of his Test debut, Shastri had moved up from tenth position in the
batting order to being an opening batsman. "His calm, sensible batting lower in the order", wrote
Wisden
''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack'', or simply ''Wisden'', colloquially the Bible of Cricket, is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom. The description "Bible of cricket" (or variations thereof) has been applied to ''Wi ...
, commenting on his first series, "raised promise of his developing into a useful all-rounder, and his
fielding too was an asset". By the end of his career, he had batted in every position from one to ten. By his own admission,
he ignored his bowling in favour of his batting. This was reflected in his performances. However, his figures of 9–101 in the season-opening 1981
Irani Trophy stood as a tournament record for nearly twenty years.
It was the failure of the regular openers
Pranab Roy and
Ghulam Parkar that led to Shastri being made to open at
the Oval
The Oval, currently named for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club sinc ...
against England in 1982. He distinguished himself by scoring 66
runs in that match. An injury in the
webbing
file:Webbing.jpg, red, blue and black nylon webbing as used in auto racing harnesses
Webbing is a strong Textile, fabric weaving, woven as a flat strip or tube of varying width and fibres, often used in place of rope. It is a versatile componen ...
of his hand ruled him out of four of the Tests to be played in Pakistan. Forced again to open in the final Test at
Karachi
Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...
, against the fast bowling of
Imran Khan
Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi (born 5 October 1952) is a Pakistani politician, philanthropist, and former cricketer who served as the 19th prime minister of Pakistan from August 2018 until April 2022. He was the founder of the political party Pak ...
(then at the peak of his career), he scored his first Test hundred. He later made another hundred against the
West Indies
The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...
in
Antigua
Antigua ( ; ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the local population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the most populous island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua ...
. ''
Indian Cricket'' was impressed enough to suggest that, given time, he could become one of the best batsmen in the Indian team.
Shastri was not selected to play in most of the important matches in the
1983 World Cup. In the series against the West Indies later that year, he again distinguished himself with his bold effort in batting against the domineering West Indian pace bowlers.
The glorious winter
In October 1984,
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
toured
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
for the third time in six years. The
Lahore
Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...
Test saw India collapse to 156 against
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
's 428, and
follow on. India went into the last day trailing by 92 with six wickets in hand but were saved by a fifth wicket
partnership
A partnership is an agreement where parties agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests. The partners in a partnership may be individuals, businesses, interest-based organizations, schools, governments or combinations. Organizations ...
of 126 between Shastri and
Mohinder Amarnath. Shastri scored 71, while Amarnath made 101*. Shastri was even more successful in the next Test at
Faisalabad
Faisalabad, formerly known as Lyallpur, is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, second-largest city and primary List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, industrial center of the Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan ...
, where he scored 139 and shared a stand of 200 with
Sandeep Patil. The last Test and the remainder of the tour were cancelled because of the
assassination of Indira Gandhi
Prime Minister of India, Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated at 9:30 AM on 31 October 1984 at her 7 RCR, residence in Safdarjung Road, New Delhi. She was killed by her bodyguards, Satwant Singh and Beant Singh (assassin), Be ...
.
There were already signals that Shastri was being groomed as a future captain. Indian captain
Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Manohar "Sunny" Gavaskar (Marathi pronunciation: Help:IPA/Marathi, uniːl ɡaːʋəskəɾ born 10 July 1949), is a former captain of the Indian national cricket team who represented India national cricket team, India and Mumbai crick ...
was coming to the end of his career and
Kapil Dev
Kapildev Ramlal Nikhanj (pronunciation: Help:IPA/Hindi and Urdu, əpil deːʋborn 6 January 1959) is an Indian former cricket team captain. He is regarded as one of the greatest all-rounders in the history of cricket, he was a Fast bowling, ...
, who had led India in the previous season, was expected to succeed him. Shastri appeared to be the next in line. He led the Young India side to Zimbabwe in early 1984. Against the touring English side in November, he led the India Under–25 to an innings win - the first defeat of
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
in a tour match in India for fifty years.
Around this time, Shastri also began to open the innings regularly in
one day games. He scored 102 against Australia in October –
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
's second hundred in ODIs – and made the same score against
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
at
Cuttack
Cuttack (, or officially Kataka in Odia language, Odia ), is the former capital, deputy capital and the 2nd largest city of the Indian state of Odisha. It is also the headquarters of the Cuttack district. The name of the city is an anglicised f ...
in December. Shastri had stood in for Gavaskar and opened with Srikkanth in two matches of the
1983 World Cup. The third time that they opened was at Cuttack and they set a world record of 188 for the first wicket. Later in the season, this partnership was to form the foundation for the Indian triumph in the WCC in Australia.
Shastri's success continued in Test matches against England. In the
Bombay
Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...
Test his 235 run stand with
wicket-keeper
In cricket, the wicket-keeper is the Cricket player, player on the fielding (cricket), fielding side who stands behind the wicket, ready to stop Delivery (cricket), deliveries that pass the batsman, and take a Caught, catch, Stumped, stump the ...
Syed Kirmani led to victory for India. His 142 improved upon the 139 at Faisalabad as his highest score.
In the third Test at
Kolkata
Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...
, Shastri made 111 in 357 balls and 455 minutes, though his innings was heavily interrupted by rain. With
Mohammad Azharuddin he added 214 for the fifth wicket, another Indian record. When India started the second innings late in the final day, he was sent in to open, thus becoming one of the few batsmen to bat on all five days of a Test.
Shastri set another record for Bombay against Baroda in a West Zone Ranji match. His first hundred came up in 72 minutes and 80 balls and included nine fours and four sixes. The second took just 41 minutes and 43 balls. His 123 ball, 113-minute 200* became the fastest double hundred in first class history, beating the previous record by 7 minutes, and included 13 fours and 13 sixes. Six of the sixes came off a single over of the left arm spinner
Tilak Raj. In terms of the number of sixes, it bettered the 58-year-old Indian record of
CK Nayudu who had struck 11 sixes against a touring MCC team at Bombay Gymkhana in 1926–7. Shastri's unfinished sixth wicket stand of 204* with Ghulam Parkar, who contributed only 33 to the partnership, took only 83 minutes. In Baroda's second innings, Shastri took two wickets in four overs.
[''Indian Cricket 1985'']
World Championship of Cricket - 1985
Except for a few series in Pakistan and the 1983 World Cup final, the World Championship of Cricket in Australia was the first time overseas cricket matches were shown live in India. The WCC saw India win every match convincingly. The WCC was conceived as a celebration of the 150th year of the formation of
Victoria, but the finalists turned out to be India and Pakistan.
Shastri had a slow start to the tournament but finished with fifties in the last three matches. Srikkanth too scored three fifties and India posted century opening stands against
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
and in the final. India went in with two spinners for every match. It helped that all the matches were played at
Melbourne
Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
and
Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
which have turning tracks and long boundaries. Sivaramakrishnan and Shastri claimed 18 wickets between them in five matches.
For his 182 runs and 8 wickets, Shastri was chosen as the man of the series which in this tournament was called 'The Champion of Champions'. He won an
Audi 100
The Audi 100 and Audi 200 (and sometimes called Audi 5000 in North America) are primarily mid-size/executive cars manufactured and marketed by the Audi division of the Volkswagen Group. The car was made from 1968 to 1997 across four generations (C ...
car for his efforts. By the special order of Prime Minister
Rajiv Gandhi
Rajiv Gandhi (20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991) was an Indian statesman and pilot who served as the prime minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the Assassination of Indira Gandhi, assassination of his mother, then–prime ...
, Indian customs waived the heavy duty its import would have normally entailed.
Vice-Captaincy 1985
Two weeks later India won the Rothman's cup in
Sharjah
Sharjah (; ', Gulf Arabic: ''aš-Šārja'') is the List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, third-most populous city in the United Arab Emirates, after Dubai and Abu Dhabi. It is the capital of the Emirate of Sharjah and forms part of the D ...
beating Pakistan and Australia. The victory against
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
was particularly memorable because India defended a total of only 125. Shastri and Siva continued their successful partnership with the ball. It was for this tournament that Shastri served as the Indian vice captain for the first time. Gavaskar had announced his decision to resign his captaincy at the end of the WCC before the tournament began. Before the final, former Australian captain
Ian Chappell
Ian Michael Chappell (born 26 September 1943) is a former cricketer who played for South Australia and Australia. Known as "Chappelli", he is considered as one of the greatest captains the game has seen. suggested that for the good of Indian cricket, Gavaskar should continue as the captain until Shastri could take over from him.
Shastri continued as vice captain to Kapil Dev in the 1985–86 season. This season and the England tour of 1986 were ordinary ones for him. Australia, Sri Lanka and Pakistan toured India in 1986–87. Shastri played a crucial role in the
Tied Test
A tied Test is a Test cricket match in which the side batting second is bowled out in the fourth innings, with scores level. This is a very rare result; only two ties have occurred, , in the 2,573 Tests played since 1877. The first was in 1960 and ...
at
Madras
Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...
against
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, scoring 62 and 48*. When Indian middle order collapsed and India fell behind the run rate, his two sixes in quick succession off
off–spinner Greg Matthews came in handy. In the final Test at Bombay he scored 121*. As was becoming increasingly common, it was played in first and fourth gear. He hung around for around 30 minutes for the last run for his fifty and twice as long in the nineties. Yet he hit six sixes, three of which came after he completed his hundred. The huge six off left arm fast bowler
Bruce Reid – a cross batted heave that went over longon – was particularly memorable. Six sixes in an innings was an Indian record at the time. But he was outshone by
Dilip Vengsarkar who scored 164* in the same innings. They added a record 298* for the sixth wicket.
In early 1987, he presented a 15-minute coaching series which went by the name 'That's Cricket'. This was aired on the national channel
Doordarshan
Doordarshan (), abbreviated as DD, is India's State-owned enterprise, state-owned public broadcasting, public television broadcaster. Established by the Government of India on 15 September 1959, it is owned by the Ministry of Information and B ...
on Sunday mornings. There were even rumours of an involvement with actress
Amrita Singh.
India lost the final Test at
Bangalore
Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...
to lose the 1986–87 series against Pakistan. Kapil Dev was widely criticised in the media for his captaincy. The selectors retained him as captain in the
Reliance World Cup at the beginning of the 1987–88 season. Shastri failed with the bat in the Reliance Cup but formed a successful bowling partnership with
Maninder Singh, another left arm spinner. India topped its group but went down to England in the semifinal. Kapil Dev received more criticisms for skying a catch to deep midwicket when a win was still a possibility.
Captaincy issues 1987
About this time, Vengsarkar emerged as the strongest candidate to take over from Kapil. He had had a dream run with the bat, starting from the series in England in 1986. In 1987, the newly established Deloitte ratings (the forerunner of the current LG ratings) ranked him the best batsman in the world. The Indian selectors have conventionally leaned towards making the best player of the team the captain. So before the home series against
West Indies
The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...
, Kapil was sacked and Vengsarkar was made the Indian captain.
Vengsarkar had his left arm fractured in the third Test and Shastri captained India for the only time in his Test career. On an underprepared turning track in Madras, India won the toss and elected to bat first. Debutant
Narendra Hirwani
Narendra Deepchand Hirwani (born 18 October 1968) is a leg spin bowler who played for India. He is mainly remembered for his success on his Test debut. He was a part of the Indian squad which won the 1988 Asia Cup.
Early days
Hirwani came ...
took 16 for 136 as India won by 255 runs to draw the series 1–1. Apart from this, Shastri did little with bat or ball. West Indies won 7 of the eight one day matches, he was the captain in six of them. Vengsarkar meanwhile picked up a six-month ban from
BCCI
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is the principal national governing body of the sport of cricket in India. Its headquarters are situated at the Cricket Centre in Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. BCCI is the wealthiest governing body ...
for writing newspaper columns. So Shastri continued as the captain for a three nations tournament in Sharjah in April. Sri Lanka and New Zealand were the other teams and India won easily.
Sacking and vice captaincy 1989
India travelled to West Indies in early 1989. Though a failure overall, Shastri played the best innings by either side in the series. It came at
Bridgetown
Bridgetown (UN/LOCODE: BB BGI) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Barbados. Formerly The Town of Saint Michael, the Greater Bridgetown area is located within the Parishes of Barbados, parish of Saint Michael, Barbados, Saint Mic ...
in the second Test. India trailed by 56 in the first innings and lost the six second innings wickets for 63. Batting at No.3, Shastri was last out for a courageous 107 out of 251 all out. Looking back at the end of his career, he was to consider this his finest innings. The bowlers were
Malcolm Marshall
Malcolm Denzil Marshall (18 April 1958 – 4 November 1999) was a Barbadian cricketer. Primarily a fast bowler, Marshall is widely regarded as one of the greatest and one of the most accomplished fast bowlers of the modern era in Test cricket ...
,
Curtly Ambrose
Sir Curtly Elconn Lynwall Ambrose KCN (born 21 September 1963) is an Antiguan former cricketer who played 98 Test matches for the West Indies. Widely acknowledged as one of the greatest fast bowlers of all time, he took 405 Test wickets at ...
,
Courtney Walsh
Courtney Andrew Walsh OJ (born 30 October 1962) is a Jamaican former cricketer who represented the West Indies from 1984 to 2001, captaining the team in 22 Test matches. He played as a fast bowler and is considered one of the all-time greats, ...
and
Ian Bishop and the pitch, difficult.
On the way back many of the Indian players took part in an exhibition match in United States. BCCI suspended the players. Though the suspension was later revoked, Vengsarkar was sacked. Srikkanth became the new captain and Shastri, yet again, the deputy. After an indifferent series in Pakistan, both were excluded from the tour of New Zealand in 1990. Azharuddin led an experimental team which a selector called the 'team of the nineties'. Within a few weeks, the phrase got the status of a joke. Shastri was recalled for the tour to England that summer as the vice-captain.
The Indian summer
Shastri's career generally remained a struggle until the England tour of 1990 where he scored two hundreds in the three Test rubber. Opening the innings for India, he began with an even 100 in India's reply to a huge England score at Lord's. It was a hard-working innings and Shastri played and missed often with most of the runs came with his usual flicks and nudges. Towards the end of his innings, he grew aggressive, reaching his hundred by hitting the English off-spinner
Eddie Hemmings for two fours and a six in an over, and departed immediately attempting another big hit.
He topped this with 187 at the Oval. Journalist and commentator
Harsha Bhogle's description of this innings holds true for many of Shastri's major efforts:
:Watching Shastri bat is like admiring the
Qutub Minar; tall, timeless, solid. You admire it for the virtues, not for its style. For nine hours and 21 minutes, he chiselled away the England attack and the sculpture that he left behind represented perseverance and craft. There was the usual stoic, expressionless face under the helmet, but you could see the determination in his eyes as he planted himself at the wicket, struck root and bore fruit.
: Only occasionally, the bat wavered in its resolve but the mind put it on the right path again, almost in admonishment, and the bat grew broader and straighter ... He may never be a Gavaskar, but he at least represents the great man's virtues, even if by proxy. It would be a relief too, to know that he will never throw away his wicket for nobody guards his crease more fiercely.
Following the innings at the Oval, Shastri scored his career best score of 217 in the Irani trophy in the opening match of the Indian season and a top score of 88 on a very bad wicket in the
Chandigarh
Chandigarh is a city and union territory in northern India, serving as the shared capital of the states of Punjab and Haryana. Situated near the foothills of the Shivalik range of Himalayas, it borders Haryana to the east and Punjab in the ...
Test against Sri Lanka. He carried his bat for 101* against the same opponents in a one-day match a week later, reaching the hundred with a two off the last ball. Next year in South Africa's first-ever ODI series on their return to international cricket, he scored 109 at Delhi, his fourth and last one day hundred. A series of abandoned tours meant India played few matches at home at this time.
At the end of 1991, India travelled to Australia for a five Test series, to be followed by the World Cup.
Channel 9 dubbed it ''the Indian Summer''. The series was a disaster for India – they lost four of the Tests – and was rife with umpiring controversies. But it also saw the final flourishes in the careers of Shastri and Kapil Dev.
Shastri took 5 wickets for 15 runs against Australia in an early match in the World Series Cup. It was then the best bowling figures by an Indian in
ODIs
ODIS, or the Offender Data Information System is a web based, computerized records management software application to improve the capture, maintenance and quality of law enforcement data that is capable of running in any combination of centraliz ...
. Most of the wickets were gratuitously earned, though – three batsmen were caught on the
legside boundary and another stumped. In the third Test at Sydney, he scored his only double hundred in Test cricket, the first by an Indian against Australia. He was dropped in the sixties by the Australian leg-spinner
Shane Warne
Shane Keith Warne (13 September 1969 – 4 March 2022) was an Australian international cricketer whose career ran from 1992 to 2007. Warne played as a right-arm leg spin bowler and a lower-order right-handed batter for Victoria, Hampshire ...
, who was making his debut, off his own bowling. Amidst frequent interruptions by rain, he completed his hundred early on the fourth day and a six off Warne brought up the 150. He finally fell to a tired shot at Warne after nine and a half hours, scoring 206 with 17 fours and the two sixes, thus becoming Warne's first Test wicket.
It was also during this innings that the knee injury that would soon end his career appeared for the first time. India had gone into the match with four pace bowlers and no regular spinners. Shastri was little more than a part-time bowler by this time. By the final day, pitch started taking spin. Shastri took four wickets in the second innings and Australia just about beat the clock to draw the match. India could well have won the match with another spinner.
Late career
The remaining
WSC matches followed the Sydney Test. In the second final against Australia Shastri worsened the knee injury. At the later stages of the innings he was forced to stand and slog. After a few quick runs, it ended in an inevitable mishit to cover. He missed the remaining two Test matches, both of which India lost. For a while it seemed doubtful that he would be able to play the
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...
which was being hosted by Australia and New Zealand, but was included at the last moment.
In their second match, India chased 238 to win in 50 overs against Australia. A rain interruption meant that the target was revised to 236 in 47 overs. Shastri took 67 balls for his 25; India went on to lose by one run. He was blamed for the defeat and dropped from the remaining matches of the tournament.
In the next season, South Africa hosted India for their first ever tour. Shastri opened in all four Tests and struggled to score runs. The only bright spot was a 16 ball 27 not out, in India's one day win at Centurion park. He had batted down the order in the one day matches of this series. In reference to the World Cup innings against Australia, he commented later that for once he knew what his exact role was.
India hosted England immediately after the South Africa series. The knee injury returned before the series and put Shastri out of cricket for eight months. He never again represented India in international cricket.
Post-retirement
He made his debut as a TV commentator with the World Masters Tournament in Mumbai in March 1995.
In 2003, he collaborated in starting up ''Showdiff Worldwide'', a celebrity management company. He has since served
ICC and
BCCI
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is the principal national governing body of the sport of cricket in India. Its headquarters are situated at the Cricket Centre in Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. BCCI is the wealthiest governing body ...
in temporary official capacities and as a
UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador
UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador is an official postnominal honorific title, title of authority, legal status, and job description assigned to those goodwill ambassadors and activists, advocates who are designated by the United Nations. The UNICEF, ...
. Some of his temporary shows, such as Super Spells, still run
Star Sports and related channels. He and fellow commentator
Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Manohar "Sunny" Gavaskar (Marathi pronunciation: Help:IPA/Marathi, uniːl ɡaːʋəskəɾ born 10 July 1949), is a former captain of the Indian national cricket team who represented India national cricket team, India and Mumbai crick ...
ended their long-term associations with
ESPN-STAR Sports in April 2008 as they were contracted by the BCCI as commentators for lucrative
Indian Premier League
The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a professional Twenty20 (T20) cricket league in India, organised by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Founded in 2007, it features ten city-based Professional sports league organization, fr ...
which was broadcast by rival network
Sony Maxbr>
2008 also held great significance for Shastri as he became the father of Alekha at the age of 46. He temporarily coached the
Indian cricket team
The India men's national cricket team, also known as Men in Blue, represents India in international cricket. It is governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India and is a full member nation of the International Cricket Council with T ...
for their 2007 Bangladesh tour. He was named the Celebrity Torchbearer for the
Oman
Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...
Leg of the
2008 Summer Olympics torch relay
The 2008 Summer Olympics torch relay was run from March 24 until August 8, 2008, prior to the 2008 Summer Olympics, with the theme of "one world, one dream". Plans for the relay were announced on April 26, 2007, in Beijing, China. The relay, a ...
.
Coaching career
In July 2017 Shastri, the former team director, was appointed as Head Coach for the national side by the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), comprising
Sourav Ganguly
Sourav Chandidas Ganguly (; natively spelled as Gangopadhyay; born 8 July 1972), also known as Dada (meaning ''"elder brother"'' in Bengali language, Bengali), is an Indian cricket commentator and former cricketer. He is popularly called the ...
,
Sachin Tendulkar
Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar (; ; born 24 April 1973) is an Indian former international cricketer who List of India national cricket captains#Men's cricket, captained the Indian national team. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest cricketer ...
and
VVS Laxman. The contract has him getting paid Rs. 8 crore per year. Rs. 1.5 Crore more than his predecessor
Anil Kumble
Anil Kumble (; born 17 October 1970) is a former Indian cricketer, captain, coach and commentator who played Test cricket, Test and One Day International cricket for his national team over an international career of 18 years. A right-arm leg sp ...
. As the World cup 2019 was in progress, on 13 June, the BCCI announced an extension of Shastri's contract by 45 days after the tournament. On 16 August 2019, he was re-appointed as the head coach of the senior men's Indian team, with his new contract extending up to the
2021 ICC T20 World Cup in India.
Under the guidance of head coach Ravi Shastri, India achieved one of their most historic Test victories at the Gabba during the 2020-21
Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Despite being plagued by injuries and fielding a relatively inexperienced side, Shastri’s leadership played a crucial role in fostering belief and resilience within the team. His strategic approach, combined with his ability to motivate players, helped India chase down 328 runs on the final day, breaking Australia’s 32-year unbeaten streak at the Gabba. The win not only secured
2-1 seriesvictory but also marked the end of a decent coaching career.
Legends League Cricket
In November 2021, Shastri retired from coaching national cricket team and joined the Legends League Cricket as the commissioner.
In popular culture
A
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". The in ...
film ''
Azhar'' released in 2016, directed by Tony D'Souza, revolves around
Match fixing scandals in late 90s and 2000 and role of
Mohammad Azharuddin in the scandal. Shastri's character was portrayed by
Gautam Gulati in the film. However, the film portrayed Shastri's character in highly negative light as it depicts him as a Womaniser. Due to the negative depiction, Shastri slammed the makers of the film and further said that he has no intentions of watching the movie.
The 2021 Indian film ''
83'', which is based on India's World Cup win, features Dhairya Karwa portraying Shastri's character.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shastri, Ravi
1962 births
Coaches of the Indian national cricket team
Cricketers at the 1983 Cricket World Cup
Cricketers at the 1987 Cricket World Cup
Cricketers at the 1992 Cricket World Cup
Don Bosco schools alumni
Glamorgan cricketers
Indian cricket commentators
Indian cricketers
20th-century Indian sportsmen
India Test cricket captains
India One Day International cricketers
India Test cricketers
Living people
Mangaloreans
Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers
Mumbai cricketers
Cricketers from Mumbai
Recipients of the Arjuna Award
Tulu sportspeople
West Zone cricketers
Indian cricket coaches
M Parkinson's World XI cricketers