Rahul Dravid reveals which call made him continue as India head coach after the ODI World Cup 2023 final loss

Under head coach Rahul Dravid, India played in three ICC finals.

Rahul Dravid has revealed that a call from captain Rohit Sharma made him continue as Indian men’s senior cricket team head coach after a heartbreaking loss against Australia in the World Cup 2023 final in Ahmedabad on November 19.

Under the leadership of Rohit Sharma, hosts India remained unbeaten until the World Cup 2023 final. However, the Men in Blue had a horrific day on November 19, when their dreams of winning the ODI title were crushed by Pat Cummins’ Australia, who won the grand finale at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad by six wickets.

Dravid’s first tenure ended after the World Cup 2023 and during his first stint with the Men in Blue, India just won the Asia Cup 2023 title. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) asked him to continue till the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 as it was due in only about six months.

This move by BCCI struck gold as Dravid helped India clinch the T20 World Cup 2024 title, after they defeated South Africa in the high-voltage final match by seven runs in Barbados on June 29.

The duo of Sharma and Dravid also ended India’s 17-year drought of winning the ICC T20 World Cup. Also, after 11 years, the Men in Blue got their hands on an ICC title. Dravid had already confirmed that the T20 World Cup 2024 assignment would be his last with the Indian cricket team.

Rohit Sharma’s call in November convinced Rahul Dravid to extend his contract

After winning the T20 World Cup 2024 title, the BCCI shared an emotional video on their social media handles in which Dravid was seen giving his final speech in the Indian dressing room as the head coach.

During his emotional speech, Dravid thanked skipper Rohit Sharma for giving him a call in November last year. Rohit convinced Dravid to stay as the head coach with the Men in Blue till the end of the T20 World Cup 2024.

“Just like to say, Ro, thank you very much for making that call to me in November and asking me to continue. I think it’s been such a privilege and a pleasure to work with each and every one, but also to Ro, thanks for the time. I know as a captain and of course, there’s a lot of time we have to chat, we have to discuss, we have to agree, we have to disagree at times, but thank you so very much,” Dravid said.

It’s your moment, we won this as a team: Dravid

Dravid had a nightmare tournament when captaining the Indian side at the 2007 ODI World Cup in the West Indies, when India were eliminated in the group stage. After 17 years, Dravid buried those horrific memories by lifting the T20 World Cup 2024 title as a coach.

Dravid acknowledged every Indian player for working as a team and lifting the ICC T20 title. The legendary cricketer further added that it’s not about individual success but all about teamwork.

I think, you know, it’s been brilliant to get to know each and every one of you as a person and yes, I think it’s your moment, guys, it’s your moment. Remember it, it’s not about any individual, it’s about a team. We won this as a team, we did everything that we did for the last one month as a team, it’s about all of us, it’s not about an individual, it’s about all of us. Thank you very well done, could not be proud, let’s party, let’s really enjoy this,” Dravid concluded.

Here is the video:

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘂𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗙𝗮𝗿𝗲-𝗪𝗔𝗟𝗟! 🫡The sacrifices, the commitment, the comeback 🏆 📽️ #TeamIndia Head Coach Rahul Dravid's emotional dressing room speech in Barbados 👌👌 #T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/vVUMfTZWbc

— BCCI (@BCCI) July 2, 2024

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