JAIPUR: Former India captain and coach Rahul Dravid has been appointed Rajasthan Royals’ head coach on a multi-year contract ahead of the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) season, the IPL franchise said on Friday.

Dravid will begin his tenure immediately, working with the team’s Dire­ctor of Cricket Kumar Sangakkara.

The 51-year-old will return to Rajasthan after spending five seasons with the team from 2011 to 2015, having captained the side in 2012 and 2013 and then working as their mentor.

Soon after, he took charge as the head coach of the India Under-19 and India A teams, leading the U-19 team to victory in the 2018 World Cup final.

After four years as coach of the junior teams, Dravid was named Head of Cricket at the National Cricket Academy in July 2019, followed by his appointment as head coach of the Indian National Cricket team in Nov. 2021. Dravid led India to the top of the Test, ODI and T20 rankings during his tenure and then step­ped down from his role in June after India’s T20 World Cup triumph.

Published in Dawn, September 7th, 2024