New Delhi: Rahul Dravid’s tenure as coach of the Indian cricket team ended on a memorable note with the T20 World Cup win after which he said he leaves with a lot of fond memories.
Dravid leaves after a three-and-half-year tenure since 2021 in which le guided them to the finals of the World Test Championship, ODI World Cup 2023 and the T20 World Cup.
Having failed to win the WTC and ODI World Cup, Dravid became third time lucky as coach to win a major ICC trophy, which was also India’s first major trophy in 11 years and second T20 World Cup triumph after 17 years.
“Just phenomenal, just lovely to be a part of a dressing room like this. It’s a memory of a lifetime for me, so I am thankful and grateful to the team and the support staff who have made this possible,” he said after the win.
Dravid forged a sound understanding with skipper Rohit Sharma and it helped create a healthy atmosphere in the dressing room where players were allowed to express themselves and encouraged to play without inhibitions.
Their mutual respect has always been visible and Rohit dedicated the victory to Dravid, who returned the compliment saying he would miss the person whom he got to know from close quarters.
“I will miss him as a person forget the cricket, forget the captain and everything. I just hope we will still be friends,” Dravid said.
“I think what’s really impressed me in all of the these is the kind of person that he is, the kind of respect he has shown me, the kind of care and commitment he has had for the team, the kind of energy, and he has never backed down from it.
“So, for me, it’s the person that I will remember the most…he will be a great captain, he will be a great player, he will win trophies but I think it’s the person that I am most fond of,” the 51-year-old added.
Journey
Dravid also disclosed that the T20 World Cup triumph was a result of two years of planning and not mere three weeks of good cricket.
“This is a journey of (over) two years, this is not a journey of this T20 World Cup, the construction of this team, the kind of skills we wanted, players we wanted, discussions started when I started in September 2021.
“The balance that we wanted in the team, two years of work, this is not just a work of this World Cup, I think it culminated in this World Cup, it has all come together here on a beautiful afternoon in Barbados,” Dravid said.
He added that the kind of talent India have now, they are bound to be front runners in the coming years.
“Today’s players are fantastic talents in Indian cricket. Their confidence, their energy, they are on a different level at this point of time.
“We have been trying to win an ICC trophy for a long time, and I am very hopeful that they will carry this confidence forward and help Indian cricket win many more trophies in the next five-six years,” the former India skipper said.
“The ability and talent this bunch of boys have is tremendous. There were moments when we felt that we were not able to win a big trophy despite giving our best. But today, I can say with confidence, that they will continue the good work and win more trophies going ahead,”
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Rahul Dravid forged a sound understanding with skipper Rohit Sharma that helped create a healthy atmosphere in the Indian dressing room, leading to the T20 World Cup triumph Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
