NEW DELHI: India’s cricket board named batting legend and former captain Rahul Dravid as head coach on Wednesday, replacing Ravi Shastri who is stepping down at the end of the ongoing T20 World Cup where the team is struggling to reach the semi-finals. “Rahul has had an illustrious playing career and is one of the greats of the game… I am hopeful that his new stint will take Indian cricket to new heights,” Sourav Ganguly, president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, said in a statement announcing the appointment. Dravid, 48, nicknamed “The Wall” or “Mr. Dependable” for his classical style and rock-solid defence, will take charge from the upcoming home series against New Zealand starting later this month. Before retiring in 2012, Dravid scored 13,288 runs in 164 Tests, second only to the legendary Sachin Tendulkar for India and fourth overall in the world rankings. Dravid, who in recent years had a successful run as head coach of India A and the under-19s nurturing several young players who are now stars, called his appointment ‘an absolute honour’. “Having worked closely with most of the boys either at NCA, U19 and India A setup, I know they have the passion and desire to improve every day,” he said in the statement. “With two World Cups scheduled to take place in the next two years, it is important to have a seamless transition, and the former India captain is the right man for the job,” said Jay Shah, BCCI honorary secretary. “I have no doubt that under him, the Indian team will dominate in all formats,” Shah said. Indian vice-captain Rohit Sharma congratulated the stalwart after the team’s first T20 World Cup win in Abu Dhabi. “Congratulations to him for coming back in a different capacity in the Indian team,” Sharma said after his team’s 66-run win over Afghanistan which preserved the team’s hopes of making the semi-finals. “We look forward to working with him. He is a stalwart of Indian cricket and it will be nice working with him in the future.” Semi-final doubts: Shastri’s departure at the end of the ongoing T20 World Cup –– at which India’s hopes of qualifying for the semi-finals are still hanging by a thread –– had already been announced following a largely successful four-year tenure. Under Shastri, a decorated former India all-rounder who took charge in 2017, India had their longest reign at the top of ICC Test rankings at over 42 months –– and consistently performed well outside the subcontinent. India became the first Asian team to win a Test series in Australia (2018-19) and followed it with another series win in 2020-21. However, his tenure also stands out for India’s inability to win any major ICC tournaments involving multiple nations, losing in the semi-finals of the 2019 World Cup in England and Wales.