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Rahul Dravid: India U-19 World Cup team close to being identified

U-19 head coach Rahul Dravid says that there are plenty of X factors in the team which won the U-19 Final against Bangladesh earlier today.

Rahul-Dravid-of-India-looks-on-during-a-India-nets-session
U-19 coach Rahul Dravid has said that the team for U-19 World Cup is shaping up. © Getty Images

Kolkata:  India Under-19 coach and batting legend Rahul Dravid on Sunday said he was close to identifying the team for the upcoming World Cup in Bangladesh next year. Earlier in the day, India U-19’s put on an impressive performance here to beat Bangladesh by seven wickets in a tri-series final and remained unbeaten throughout the tournament which also featured Afghanistan. “This was a good tournament as we start preparing for the World Cup in January. Some of the boys have put in strong performances and we are close to identifying the core team for the World Cup,” Dravid told media persons here. ALSO READ: Sarfaraz Khan: India vs Bangladesh U-19 final performance was to ‘get out of pressure’

The former India captain also said there were a lot of decisive factors in the team which can help them in the long run. “There are plenty of X factors in the team now. Rishabh Pant and Sarfaraz Khan are just two of them,” he said. Dravid also stressed on the fact that the India Under-19’s need to play a lot more bilateral series to enhance their talent. “One World Cup in two years is great. But there needs to but we need to play a lot more bilateral series,” he concluded. ALSO READ: Rahul Dravid’s experience guiding the team: India Under-19 bowler Avesh Khan

Earlier, Man of the Match Sarfaraz Khan said coach and former India captain Rahul Dravid told him to play his natural game. “Rahul sir told me to go out there and play my natural game and that is what I was trying to do,” he said. Asked about Dravid he said, “Sir is such a legend. We can’t even believe now that he is really coaching us. When we turn on the television and see some old cricket matches, and we see him (Dravid) batting and now we have him as our coach, which is quite unbelievable. The best thing about him is that he is very calm. Whenever there’s a match, he does not hold a meeting right after it, he does it after a day, so that helps us regather our thoughts as well.”

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