Indian skipper Rohit Sharma got emotional while talking about the outing head coach Rahul Dravid ahead of his side’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup opener against Ireland. Rohit said that he tried to convince Dravid to stay as the Indian men’s team head coach but respected the latter’s call to prioritise time with his family. Speaking about Dravid in the pre-match press conference, Rohit said it will be hard to see him going.
Dravid confirmed on Monday to reporters in New York that he hasn’t reapplied and has decided to move on after being in the chair of the head coach for 32 months.
“He was my first international captain. I played under him. He is a huge role model for all of us,” Rohit said of Dravid. “He did a lot for the team over the years. I saw him when he came as coach. We won almost all the major tournaments with him. He is the first person who said that this is what we have to do, this is important for the team.”
I have personally tried to convince him to continue as coach, but he has his own priorities. It has been fruitful working with him, I enjoyed every bit of it. I will not be able to see him go,” Rohit Sharma further added. Under Dravid, India reached the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia, won a couple of home Test series against Australia and England, qualified for the finals of the World Test Championship 2023 and World Cup 2023 but the elusive trophy still awaits and the former India captains has his eyes on the prize.
“Unfortunately, the kind of schedules and where I find myself at this stage in my life, I don’t think I’ll be able to re-apply. This will be my last one. But having said that, it’s (the significance of the tournament is) no different for me,” Dravid said.
