Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar said that Indian men’s cricket team’s new head coach Rahul Dravid will have very positive impact on the players given what he’s achieved in the game.

Dravid took over from Ravi Shastri as the head coach of India and will begin his tenure with the T20I series against New Zealand.

“When he used to play we used to think that till Rahul Dravid is at the crease, the Indian batting is safe and strong. This is the reason why I believe that the new responsibility of head coach that falls upon him, he will be able to handle it in a similar way,” Gavaskar was quoted as saying on Star Sports’ show Follow the Blues.

On Rohit Sharma-Dravid partnership, he added, “If you look at both of their temperaments, they are quite similar. Rohit is of a quiet nature just like Rahul Dravid. So I think their bond will be quite good because both of them will understand each other well.”

Former opening batter Gautam Gambhir also hailed the appointment of Dravid as the team new head coach.

“He was a very successful player then he became a very successful captain and I’m sure he is going to become a very successful coach as well. With him in that dressing room, I think he brings a lot of assurance, he’s played more than 100 Test matches. He’s captained the side, his work ethics were unbelievable, really hard working. So, I think he brings a lot on the table,” Gambhir said during Star Sports’ show Follow the Blues.

Aakash Chopra echoed Gambhir’s thoughts.

“When you think of Rahul Dravid, the first thing that comes to my mind is process – process, planning, execution of that planning, raw, meticulous, looking forward, looking ahead,” he said.

“He doesn’t mind losing those small battles, as aims to win the war entirely. So, this war winning mentality and attitude will come with his leadership, along with some amount of stability,” Chopra added.