On the pitch, Rahul Dravid, the former head coach of India, doesn’t display a lot of emotion. Nevertheless, the 51-year-old showed off his other side by wildly celebrating with the trophy following India’s seven-run triumph against South Africa in the T20 World Cup 2024 final in Barbados. For as long as possible, he wanted to avoid the spotlight, but after the well-earned victory, he became combative when Virat Kohli gave him the trophy.
Speaking about that, Rahul Dravid said he was content with India’s victory and hadn’t planned any of things.
He claimed that although he always attempted to control his emotions as a coach, at that particular moment he wanted to celebrate with the players and his coaching staff for their tremendous effort in finishing the task at hand.
“These aren’t things you plan.” Since I’m a coach, I usually strive to control my emotions, and you should too. However, I was ecstatic for the squad at that moment. My heart rejoiced for the lads. I was pleased for the help team. So many individuals who have put in a lot of effort beside me,” Dravid remarked in an interview with Star Sports.
The former cricket player also discussed the need for luck in order to succeed in international competitions. India lost to Australia in the World Test Championship final and the ODI World Cup final in 2023, despite having qualified for the T20 World Cup semi-finals in 2022. The team, he continued, was pleased that they had at last crossed the finish line in the T20 World Cup 2024, despite missing critical opportunities.
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“We had been close a few times, whether it was in the World Test Championship final, the 50-over World Cup final in India, or the semifinals of the most recent T20 World Cup in Australia. We were just unable to cross the line in those crucial moments,” said the player who had been with the team for two to three years. In certain circumstances, you need a little bit of fate and luck to work in your favour, and on that particular day, it worked in our favour,” he said in the same exchange.