Rahul Dravid has confirmed that the ongoing ICC Men's T20 World Cup will be his final tournament as the head coach of the Indian team. According to reports, Dravid has clearly stated that he has not applied for the position that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) recently advertised on its website. 

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Rahul Dravid confirms his departure

Rahul Dravid, who joined Team India as their head coach in 2021, is expected to step down in July. Dravid's contract will expire after the T20 World Cup 2024, which is scheduled to end on June 29. This is Rahul Dravid's last chance as India's head coach to end the 10-year-long ICC trophy-winning drought. 

"I love doing the job. I've really enjoyed coaching India and I think it's a truly special job to do. I enjoyed working with this team and it's a great bunch of boys to work with but yeah but just considering you know unfortunately the just the kind of schedules and where I find myself in the stage in my life I don't think I'll be able to reapply,"

"So yeah, obviously it'll be my last one but having said that it's no different for me to be very honest. From the first day I took the job, I always felt that every game was important and every game mattered and that will not change," the former Indian captain added.

Rahul Dravid became the head coach of the Indian men's cricket team after Ravi Shastri's contract expired in November 2021, following the conclusion of the 2021 T20 World Cup. Rahul Dravid has since coached India in three different ICC tournaments but failed to win a single trophy for the country. India reached the final of the World Test Championship and ODI World Cup in 2023 but lost to Australia on both occasions. 

India also reached the semi-final of the 2022 T20 World Cup, which they lost against England by 10 wickets. This is India's fourth ICC tournament under Rahul Dravid's leadership and it will be interesting to see how the team performs. 

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India is slated to lock horns against Ireland in their opening match of the T20 World Cup 2024 on June 5. India will then play against arch-rivals Pakistan on June 9. Both these matches will take place at the newly-built Nassau County International Stadium in New York. India will conclude the group stage with games against the USA and Canada respectively. 

India is scheduled to play a bilateral series against Zimbabwe after the end of the T20 World Cup 2024. The series will see a new head coach with the Indian team as they tour Zimbabwe.