Former Indian Coach’s Opinion On US Leg Of T20 World Cup 2024 Amid Criticism

By Ian Oyoo

In defense of the highly criticized T20 World Cup US leg, former India head coach Rahul Dravid stated that “playing at odd hours” and enduring “challenging” conditions were essential “compromises” made to promote cricket to a wider audience. Dravid said he was okay with the 10.30 a.m. (local time) openers and the infrastructure used for the games in New York, Florida, and Texas given the enormous work needed in organizing the tournament in the area.

“Yes, in terms of facilities, it’s challenging. But if you want to grow the sport and make it a global game, then you have to be at events like this and make compromises, even if it means playing at odd hours in conditions that might not necessarily be perfect,” Dravid said in a panel discussion on Cricket at the Olympics.

In the competition that saw the USA and the West Indies jointly host the knockout matches, Dravid led India to their first ICC title in eleven years.

It was thought that the United States’ first-ever staging of a major cricket match would help them gain support from the local community before the Olympics in Los Angeles. To accommodate the large number of spectators in the subcontinent, all India matches were arranged for 10.30 am, a move that sparked some criticism because it was perceived that local Americans were being overlooked.

“I don’t think starting at 10:30 am was a problem for me, honestly. We are in the entertainment business, which caters to people who want to watch the sport. I had no problem with it,” Dravid said.

“As a coach, the conditions were quite even because dew becomes a factor in many day-night games. The toss can become a big factor, as we saw in Australia. But for 10:30, it was not a problem; it was even- even for both teams. From a coaching perspective, I didn’t mind the 10:30 game,” he added.

“It was a great effort by the ICC to take the game to the USA and expose that audience to the game. There is a huge passion for the game in the USA. It was nice to play in the USA; some games were packed,” Dravid concluded.