India vs New Zealand 2021: Rahul Dravid creates a comfortable dressing room atmosphere – KL Rahul

India’s opening batter KL Rahul stated that newly appointed Indian head coach wants to create a comfortable dressing room atmosphere.

Rahul has worked with Dravid when he represented India A when the latter was the team’s coach. The Indian batter added that the veteran will want to create a culture in which every player will want to thrive.

Dravid as a coach is well known to get the best out of the young players and he is expected to get the best out of the team. KL added that Dravid was always a team man during his heydays and the players will put the team ahead of personal milestones under the tutelage of new head coach.

“Rahul Dravid comes in as well, really looking forward to working with the new coaching staff over the next 2 weeks,” KL Rahul told the press on Monday.

“Look, I have been fortunate enough to know him for a very long time. As a youngster, I did try to pick his brain. He was very helpful to all of us back home in Karnataka. He has helped the boys across the country. Having him here with us as a part of that setup will give us an opportunity to learn.

“We all know how big a name Rahul Dravid is, we have a great opportunity to learn from him and get better as cricketers. When it comes to coaching, I have played a couple of games with India A setup. He is somebody who has a great understanding of the game and creates an atmosphere where everybody is comfortable. He has always been a great team man,” he added.

Dravid has had the experience of working with a lot of players at the Under-19 and India A, who are currently part of the senior team. Thus, it is expected that Dravid will be able to hit the ground running.

On the other hand, Rohit Sharma has now being named as a T20I captain while KL Rahul has been named his deputy for the series against New Zealand. Rahul added that he has always enjoyed taking responsibilities and he is looking forward to the vice-captaincy role.

“Yes, there will be an added responsibility but it is something that I have enjoyed doing. The most important thing would be to create an atmosphere in the dressing room where people coming in feel happy and welcome and they go out to express themselves,” Rahul added.

The first T20I between India and New Zealand will take place in Jaipur on November 20.