The T20 World Cup 2024 Final against South Africa will be an emotional occasion for Team India as their head coach Rahul Dravid will be guiding the Men in Blue for one final time before stepping down from his coaching duties.
Dravid's contract was extended despite India's heartbreaking defeat against Australia in the ODI World Cup 2023 Final in Ahmedabad in November. With the ongoing edition of the T20 World Cup being the final assignment for the former Indian captain as the head coach of Team India, the fans on social media rolled out a campaign called #DoItDravid as they demand the Men in Blue win an ICC trophy for Rahul Dravid.
The campaign has garnered a lot of attention from fans, uniting Indian cricket enthusiasts in their desire to see Team India lift the T20 World Cup trophy for the second time as a fitting farewell to Rahul Dravid.
Rahul Dravid reacts to 'Do It Dravid' campaign
Reacting to social media campaign 'Do It Dravid', the outgoing Team India head coach bluntly said that it is totally against person he is and his values. He added that he doesn't want to win the World Cup for somebody else but he want to do because it's there.
"It's totally against I'm person and my values. I don’t really believe in this ‘Do it for somebody’. I love that quote about somebody asking somebody else, ‘Why do you want to climb Mount Everest?’ and he says ‘I want to climb Mount Everest because it’s there’." Dravid said on Star Sports.
"I want to win this World Cup because it's there. It's not for anyone. It's not for anybody, it's just there to win. I just want to play good cricket and yeah, doing it for someone is totally against who I am as a person and what I believe in. So, I don't want to talk about it and discuss it." he added.
Rahul Dravid assumed his coaching duties with Team India after Ravi Shastri completed his tenure in 2021. Under the Dravid's guidance, the Men in Blue reached the semifinals of the 2022 T20 World Cup but thrashed by the eventual champions England in Adelaide.
India also reached the World Championship Final but lost to Australia at The Oval in Leeds last year. Rahul Dravid came close to winning the ODI World Cup last year but Team India suffered a heartbreaking defeat against the sixth-time champions Australia in the Final.
Apart from failure to ICC trophies thus far, Dravid guided India to numerous bilateral series, with the latest being 4-1 series win against visiting England team led by Ben Stokes.
Rahul Dravid hopes to end his tenure on high
With Team India qualifying for the T20 World Cup 2024 Final against South Africa after the semifinal over England, head coach Rahul Dravid will be hoping to end his tenure on a positive note.
The Men in Blue have remained unbeaten in the showpiece event. In the first round, Rohit Sharma-led side won three consecutive matches against Ireland, Pakistan and the USA before their final group stage fixture against Canada was washed out to rain.
In Super 8, the Men in Blue continued their brilliant run by defeating Afghanistan, Australia and Bangladesh in order to seal their berth for the semifinal against England. In the semifinal, Team India avenged their 2022 T20 World Cup semifinal defeat against Jos Buttler-led side.
Team India will look to end their 11-year ICC title drought when they take on unbeaten Proteas men led by Aiden Markram in the ultimate title in Barbados on Saturday, June 29.
