Former Indian team head coach Rahul Dravid has been entrusted with a significant role in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season. He has been appointed as the head coach of Rajasthan Royals (RR) for the upcoming IPL season.
It is worth noting that Dravid was the head coach of the Indian team that won the T20 World Cup in June this year.
According to an 'ESPNcricinfo' report, Dravid has recently signed a deal with the franchise. He has already initiated discussions about player retention ahead of the upcoming mega auction.
Dravid has had a long working relationship with Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson since his Under-19 days.
Dravid has a long history with Rajasthan Royals. He captained the team in IPL 2012 and 2013, and served as the team director and mentor during the 2014 and 2015 IPL seasons. In 2016, Dravid moved to Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals).
In 2019, Rahul Dravid took on the role of head of the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru. In 2021, he was appointed as the head coach of the Indian cricket team.
During his three-year coaching tenure, Dravid led the Indian team to the WTC finals in 2021 and 2023, and to the finals of the ODI World Cup 2023. Under his coaching, Team India won the T20 World Cup on June 29, 2024.
According to a report by Cricinfo, Rajasthan Royals is also set to bring back former Indian batsman Vikram Rathour as the assistant coach under Rahul Dravid.
Rathour, who was a part of Dravid's coaching staff at the NCA before becoming India's batting coach in 2019, is expected to join the Royals.
The report states that Dravid will take charge of coaching Rajasthan Royals in the IPL. Meanwhile, Kumar Sangakkara, who has been the team director since 2021, will continue with the franchise and oversee the team's operations in other leagues, including the SA20 with Paarl Royals and the CPL with Barbados Royals.
Since winning the IPL title in the opening season of 2008, Rajasthan Royals have yet to secure another championship. In 2022, under the captaincy of Sanju Samson, the team finished as the runner-up, with Gujarat Titans clinching the title that year.
In 2023, despite a strong start to the season, Rajasthan Royals failed to make it to the playoffs and ended up in fifth place on the points table. The team was also eliminated in Qualifier 2 in 2024.