Legendary Sachin Tendulkar penned a heartfelt note for Team India after they won the T20 World Cup 2024 title in Barbados on Saturday, June 29. India defeated South Africa in one of the most thrilling tournament finals, successfully defending 177 runs by 7 runs at the Kensington Oval. Tendulkar made a special mention to India’s head coach and his ‘good friend’ Rahul Dravid, recalling the heartbreak of the 2007 ODI World Cup in the Caribbean.
Tendulkar took to social media to praise the efforts of Rahul Dravid in molding a champion side. India became the first team to win the men’s T20 World Cup without losing a game. India dominated England in the semifinal and landed a knockout blow on Australia in the Super 8 before they held their nerves and beat a spirited South African side.
“Life comes full circle for Indian cricket in the West Indies. From our lows in the 2007 ODI World Cup to becoming a cricketing powerhouse and winning the T20WC in 2024. Very happy for my friend Rahul Dravid, who missed out on the 2011 World Cup win but his contribution to this T20 World Cup victory has been immense. I am so so happy for him,” Sachin Tendulkar said in his post on X, formerly Twitter.
Dravid was the captain of the Indian team in 2007 when the Asian giants exited the ODI World Cup in the group stage. India lost to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka and faced a critical reaction back home. Dravid quit captaincy after India’s shock exit and continued to play white-ball cricket under MS Dhoni. Notably, Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, and Sourav Ganguly did not play in the inaugural edition of the T20 World Cup in 2007 which India went on to win in South Africa.
Dravid was emotional on Saturday as he celebrated wildly when he joined the trophy celebration. Dravid tried to stay away from the limelight during the victory ceremony, but he was forced to join the team by Virat Kohli who handed him the World Cup trophy.
Meanwhile, Sachin Tendulkar also helped praise on Rohit Sharma for leading the team with motivation despite the heartbreak of the ODI World CUp final last year.
Tendulkar also lauded Virat Kohli for his match-winning knock in the final against South Africa.
“What can one say about @ImRo45? Superb captaincy! To put the 2023 ODI World Cup loss behind and to keep all our players motivated towards the T20 World Cup is commendable. @Jaspritbumrah93’s Player of the Tournament award as well as @imVkohli’s Player of the Match award are both well-deserved. They were just superb when it mattered,” Tendulkar said.
“Along with Rahul, Paras Mhambrey and Vikram Rathour also made their international debuts in 1996. It was wonderful to see Team India excel under the guidance of this class of ’96. A total team effort. Hearty congratulations to all the players, coaches, support staff, and @BCCI.” he added.
India posted 176 on the board after Virat Kohli’s 76 and Axar Patel’s 47 and handy contribution from Shivam Dube. South Africa looked like they would walk away with the trophy when Heinrich Klaasen, Quinton de Kock, Tristan Stubbs and David Miller took on the Indian spinners in the middle overs. However, a sensational effort from the trio of Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Hardik Pandya helped India seal in what turned into a nail-biting thriller.
