India captain Rohit Sharma on Tuesday revealed that he tried to convince outgoing head coach Rahul Dravid to stay on with the team, even as he lauded the immense contributions of the former India captain over the past two and a half years.
Dravid had on Monday made it clear that the T20 World Cup will be his last assignment with the Indian team The following day, Rohit became emotional while discussing his first captain in the national team.
Although Gautam Gambhir is considered a potential successor to Dravid, it remains uncertain if he has applied for the position.
"I tried convincing him to stay, but obviously there are a lot of things that he needs to look after as well. But yeah, I personally enjoyed my time with him.
"I'm sure the rest of the guys will say the same. It's been great working with him. And I'm not going to say anything actually. I'm not going to say anything," an emotional Rohit remarked when questioned about the team's plans for a farewell.
Rohit and Dravid share a long history, with Rohit making his India debut under Dravid's captaincy in June 2007.
"He was my first international captain when I made my debut in Ireland. Then I've seen him play while I was just coming into the team (for) Test matches when he was captain. And such a big role model for all of us," Rohit commented ahead of India's World Cup opener against Ireland on Wednesday.
"Growing up, we watched him play and we know what he has achieved, personally as a player and also what he's done for the team over the years. Battling out the team from difficult situations and that is what he's known for," he said referring to the 'Wall'. Rohit said.
India has yet to secure a trophy during the Rohit-Dravid era, but Rohit emphasized the head coach's tremendous impact.
"He's shown a lot of great determination throughout his career and that is something that when he came here as a coach, I wanted to learn from him.
"It's been very fruitful. Other than the big silver (trophy), we won all the major tournaments and series. I've enjoyed every bit of it, working with him, deciding what direction the team needs to head.
"And for him to buy into that thought, obviously makes a huge difference. And he was the first one who came and said, 'this is what we need to do as a team'. No matter what happens, but at least we'll give it a good shot at it when he arrived," added Rohit.
Dravid assumed the role of head coach in November 2021.
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