Photo via Hindustan Times

Rahul Dravid ‘behaving like an owner’ in ETPL, leaves strategies up to Ashwin, Vikram Rathour: ‘Lost opening five games’

The debut season of the European T20 Premier League has seen the Dublin Guardians endure a challenging start, securing merely a solitary victory across their first six matches after dropping five straight contests. Despite placing second from bottom on the table, team owner Rahul Dravid has maintained a supportive, hands-off approach.

Head coach Vikram Rathour revealed that the former Indian batter and national team coach acts strictly as a team proprietor, leaving team selection and tactical plans entirely to the coaching staff and squad captain Ravichandran Ashwin, who has proved invaluable thanks to his deep tactical insight into worldwide talent.

Designed to elevate the sport across European territories such as the Netherlands and Ireland, the competition mixes associate nation competitors with prominent cricket figures including Glenn Maxwell, Devon Conway, and Daryl Mitchell. The tournament structure uniquely features current and retired international players in ownership positions, such as Maxwell co-owning the Belfast Wolves alongside involvement from figures like Steve Waugh, Matthew Hayden, Faf du Plessis, Jonty Rhodes, and Heinrich Klaasen.