‘SUCCESS DOESN'T TEACH YOU MUCH, FAILURE DOES'

Former cricket captain Ravi Shastri on turning entrepreneur at 58 with personal grooming brand 23 Yards, his approach as Team India coach, and learnings from the game and his stellar career

- RAJIV SINGH

The meeting with Ravi Shastri was slated to start at 4.30 pm, but one of the most successful coaches in Indian cricket history was running late. The Zoom call got postponed by one-and-a-half hours to 6 pm. “Is six your lucky number,” is the first question Forbes India asks Shastri. After all, this man, virtually overnight, shed a defensive approach to become among the most famous hitter of sixes, smacking six of them in as many balls in a Ranji Trophy match in January 1985. Once again, Shastri doesn’t defend. “Nothing like that,” he says. “I just got stuck somewhere. But it’s ironic. It’s good. If it starts at 6, so be it.”

Aggression, and speaking his mind, have at times landed Shastri in controversy. But he doesn’t care. “If I’m passionate about something, and you ask me a question, I will tell you how I feel,” he says, as the national cricket coach pads up for a new innings by rolling out 23 Yards, a men’s personal care grooming brand. Very often, he lets on, when you say what you feel, people are shocked. “It’s okay. I never had an agenda,” says the all-rounder, who is donning the hat of an entrepreneur at 58. Does age matter? “It’s never about age. It’s just another number,” he says. “I enjoyed my career and I was extremely passionate about the game.”

Explaining the rationale behind the brand name, Shastri explains it’s his philosophy of going that extra yard. For him, the passion now is to make a mark on the business pitch. Does he fear failure? “Absolutely not,” he replies with his signature swag. One day, he says, you’re a hero, the next day a zero.