Ajinkya Rahane says he is ready to bat at any position
What’s the Story?
In the absence of star Indian opener Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane took over the role of opening the batting against West Indies in all 5 ODIs. He did so with aplomb as he ended up as the leading run-scorer of the series and giving the selectors a lot to think about.
“See, what is going to happen in the future we don’t know. This series will give me a lot of confidence especially for the ODI and shorter format. If the team management thinks I should bat at No.4 or at No.1 and 2 then I will always be giving my 100 percent on that. I am not sure what is going to happen in the future, but I always like to give my best in ODI and T20 formats. I am looking forward to doing well consistently in ODI format,” said Rahane while speaking to the media ahead of the one-off T20I game to be held here at the Sabina Park on Sunday,” said Rahane about batting at no. 4.
“I actually batted at No.4. Even at World Cup I batted at No.4, scored against South Africa, so I know how to handle batting at Nos.3, 4 and 5. It is not a big issue but we’ll have to wait and watch and see what’s going to happen,” he continued.
Also Read: India's probable playing XI for the one-off T20I against West Indies
In case you didn’t know...
There was a lot of doubt about Rahane’s inclusion in the side with the critics questioning whether he would be able to perform well or not. He began the series with a well crafted half century and followed that up with a magnificent, match-winning century for the Men in Blue. He followed that up with a couple more fifty-plus scores as he ended with 336 runs to his name in 5 innings.
The Indian cricket team, led by Virat Kohli achieved a comprehensive 3-1 series victory over the Windies after losing the 4th match of the series in a nail-biting encounter.
The Details:
The Indian cricket team are currently facing the problem of plenty with a lot of batsmen to occupy just a couple of positions in the batting line-up. Rahane’s incredible run of form still might not guarantee him a spot on the side when Rohit Sharma comes back for the next series.
KL Rahul too is on a comeback trail and it is still undecided as to where he would fit in the batting set up. With Yuvraj’s dip in form, we would most likely see either Rahane or Rahul play at no. 4 with Rohit continuing to open the batting with Shikhar Dhawan for the time being.
What’s next?
India will travel to Sri Lanka for 3 Tests, 5 ODIs, and one T20I starting from 26 July.
Author’s Take
Rahane has definitely proved himself to his critics after a superb outing against West Indies. However, his credibility at no. 4 is still in doubt. Despite him performing so well, we might continue to see him on the bench once Rohit and Rahul return.
With a lot of time to go before the 2019 World Cup and with India playing a whole lot of ODIs before the tournament, they could try out a lof of different combinations to find the perfect batting line-up.