India’s head coach, Rahul Dravid, wants the team to prioritize replicating their recent strong performances and reaching the knockout stages, rather than dwelling on the narrative of an ICC trophy drought, as they embark on their T20 World Cup 2024 campaign.
Despite India‘s string of near misses in major tournaments under his and Rohit Sharma‘s leadership, Dravid remains optimistic. He highlighted the team’s consistency, citing their semi-final appearance in the 2022 T20 World Cup, reaching the World Test Championship final, and a strong run to the ODI World Cup final last year.
“We’ve actually played really well in these World Cup tournaments,” Dravid said in a pre-match press conference. “We know the quality of cricket that we have played. The important thing is not to think about the trophy jinx, but to get ourselves into those knockout positions.”
India’s last major ICC trophy win came in 2013 under MS Dhoni‘s captaincy, and Dravid acknowledges the need to overcome past disappointments in crucial knockout matches.
“We probably haven’t been able to execute in that last phase,” he admitted. “Hopefully, we can play good cricket and get ourselves into those positions again. The key is to focus on getting to the knockout stages, and then hopefully, we can cross the line.”
India’s journey begins against Ireland, followed by a highly anticipated clash against Pakistan. They will then face the USA and Canada in Group A.
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