'Told me he Wants to Quit Due to Family Commitments': Jay Shah on Why BCCI Didn't Force Rahul Dravid to Extend Tenure

Under Rahul Dravid, India made it to the finals of three ICC events. (AP Photo)

Rahul Dravid agreed to extend his tenure as the head coach after India’s heartbreaking defeat in the final of the 2023 ODI World Cup as he felt there was unfinished business, says BCCI secretary Jay Shah. And with India winning 2024 T20 World Cup, Dravid got the job done and is now more than happy to step away from the top job to fulfill his family commitments.

Shah has revealed that Dravid informed him he wanted to quite because of family reasons and hence the board didn’t force him to extend his stay with the team.

“He (Dravid) told me that due to family commitments he wants to quit and we respect his decision. I didn’t force him to extend,” Shah told reporters in Barbados.

“Rahul bhai has served Indian cricket for the past five and half years. He was director of the National Cricket Academy for three years and then for the past two and half years, he served as head coach of Team India,” he added.

Shah says Dravid’s role was as vital as Rohit Sharma who led the team to the title win before announcing his decision to retire from T20Is.

“Rahul Dravid’s role is as important as Rohit Sharma in this T20 World Cup title triumph. He is a man, who took the team to the 2023 ODI World Cup final and didn’t leave because he wanted to finish the job,” Shah said.

A young Indian team, led by Shubman Gill, will take on Zimbabwe in a five-match T20I bilateral series that gets underway later this week.

Shah is hopeful India’s title run will continue with the end of their 11-year ICC trophy drought. “I would want India to win all the titles. We have the biggest bench strength, only three players from this team are going to Zimbabwe. We can field three teams if the need arises,” he said.

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