Published - | Updated - February 16, 2023 03:58 pm
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Ajinkya Rahane’s captaincy is not discussed as much as it ought to for whatever reason. India’s captain during the Virat Kohli era was Rahane, the vice-captain of the Test squad, took over as skipper while Kohli was unavailable, and he did a respectable job. He was there when India needed to defeat Australia in the Dharamsala Test in 2017 to ensure that they regained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, and he was undoubtedly in command during India’s probably all-time best Test series victory in 2020–21. But for some reason or another, his qualifications as a captain have always been disregarded.
Virat Kohli was more forceful, but Rahane wasn’t as aggressive. as composed as MS Dhoni Rahane the captain was the result of combining these two, not the other way around. Rahane was always able to mix assertiveness with restraint. Former India fielding coach R Sridhar commented on Rahane’s captaincy in his book “Coaching Beyond,” pointing out that the batsman is by no means a weak leader.
“Make no mistake, Ajinkya was not a weak character. Prithvi Shaw was fielding at short leg during this incident in a practise game in Drummoyne, Sydney. Prithvi was hit while the hitter tried to sweep. Ajinkya was on the case as soon as he attempted to hobble off the field and towards the locker room. From his vantage point in the slip, he could easily see where Prithvi had In his memoir, he stated that he had been struck on the shin pad.
Rahane walked up to him and gave him a firm command to stop moving forward. You won’t be replaced on the field by anyone. I watched the ball strike your shin pad, so I know you’re fine. Perhaps you were waiting for a chance to return inside, but that opportunity is not present. Return to the short leg and take your place. Prithvi was aware that his bluff had been called, and Ajinkya had quietly warned the others that he would tolerate no mischief. We only had an XI for that game, so I was supposed to come in as a replacement, so I was quite relieved.
Rahane has led India as its captain between 2017 and 2021. four of the six tests were won, while two were drawn. Despite the small amount of games, Rahane has a victory percentage of 66.66 as India captain and has never lost a Test. Rahane served a similar function during the Sourav Ganguly period as India captain as Rahul Dravid did during that time. Sridhar bemoaned the fact that Rahane’s captaincy is still underappreciated and emphasised how well he got along with everyone.
“India has a great track record under Ajinkya because he can be stern when necessary without being harsh. India has won three of the four Tests he has captained the squad in against Australia, including two away from home. That’s an incredible achievement for a player who isn’t given the opportunity to captain frequently or again. He has a deep understanding of the game. I got the impression that the senior players have a larger sense of responsibility when he is the captain; they start contributing more, said Sridhar. He is really laid-back and personable.Also Read : Deepti Sharma: First Indian cricketer to take 100 wickets in T20