Is there still a chance for Ajinkya Rahane to make a comeback?
Ajinkya Rahane was once regarded as the most bankable batter in the Indian middle order. The Mumbai batter rose to the spotlight after his hundreds at Lord's and the MCG on the 2014 tours to England and Australia.
However, over the past few years, his form has gone completely off the boil and he was dropped from the Indian team. He last represented India in the Cape Town Test in January 2022.
Here, we will analyze what has gone wrong for the former Indian vice-captain and if he still has a chance of making a comeback.
When did things start to go downhill for Ajinkya Rahane?
The 34-year-old has played 82 Tests for India, scoring 4931 runs at an average on 38.52 including 25 fifties and 12 hundreds. His career can be separated into two halves, one before and one after his 188 at Indore in October 2016 against New Zealand, which also happens to be his highest score in Test cricket.
That game was the 29th test of his career and the numbers since then have clearly taken a nosedive. Here's a detailed statistical analysis of his first 29 and next 53 tests:
In the first 29 tests:
In the next 53 tests:
The numbers have further plummeted since the start of 2020, with his average dropping to 24.
What has been the root cause for his failures?
Rahane's ability to play quality spin bowling is not as good as some of the other Indian batsmen, which is why his record in India has never been spectacular. Cricket experts believe that there is a technical flaw in his batting with his half-step forward trigger movement which causes a lot of trouble for him when the ball moves late.
Can Rahane still force a comeback into the Indian team?
A comeback into the Indian side for Rahane looks difficult at the moment. Shreyas Iyer has already made the No.5 spot his own and the competition surrounding the No.5 spot is intense. Despite his courageous Sydney heroics in 2021, Hanuma Vihari still hasn't had enough chances post that knock. Rahane, who will turn 35 this year, does not have age on his side.
The fact that team management decided to pick Suryakumar Yadav for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2023 ahead of the senior pro when Iyer was injured shows that the ship may have already sailed for Rahane.