"He would be more upset after the start he got in first innings" - Wasim Jaffer following Ajinkya Rahane's another failure in the second innings
Ex-Indian batter Wasim Jaffer has spoken about the out-of-form Ajinkya Rahane. Jaffer said the Indian batter would be more upset by his inability to convert the start he got in the first innings.
Jaffer's statement came in the wake of Rahane's another failure with the bat in the second innings of the ongoing Test against New Zealand.
The India's stand-in skipper for the first Test has been on an extended run of poor performances. The 33-year-old now averages 32.73 in 50 Tests since the Indore Test against NZ in 2016 where he made a career-best 188.
Hard times for Rahane in Test cricket. https://t.co/iBdZbGTCSE
Rahane scored just four runs in the second inning. Speaking about this, Mumbai veteran Wasim Jaffer pointed out that batting on Day 4 was always going to be a tough ask. Jaffer said on ESPNcricinfo:
''Rahane would have been more upset after the start he got in the first innings and didn't convert into a big one because in the second innings, anytime you bat on day 4 or 5, pitch is going to ask for hard work. So you can understand that the second innings is always going to be a struggle. But in the first innings when the conditions were good for batting comparatively, that's where Rahane would be more upset that he didn't convert into a big one."
After getting off to a decent start in the first innings, Rahane missed out on an opportunity and was cleaned up by Kyle Jamieson.
During the second innings, he was plumped in front of the wicket against a rather straight delivery from spinner Ajaz Patel.
"In India when the batters are out of form, the bowlers sits out." - Jaffer divulged his desire not to drop Rahane for the Mumbai Test match
With regular skipper Virat Kohli set to return for the second Test in Mumbai, Rahane's place in the XI doesn't seem certain. Moreover, the Mumbai-born batter's prolonged atrocious run of form has put question marks over his place.
When quizzed on whether Jaffer will keep Rahane in his ideal XI for the next Test in Mumbai, the Mumbai giant replied in affirmative. He responded that if at all the team has to drop Mayank Agarwal, they should open with keeper Wriddhaman Saha.
Jaffer jokingly opined that in India if a batter goes out of form, the bowlers tend to sit out rather than the batter himself. He mentioned:
"I think in India when the batters are out of form, the bowlers sits out. So you might see 4 bowlers playing in Wankhede. I mean it's tricky when someone is your captain in the first test, you will think twice before dropping for the second. I'm probably thinking about opening up with Saha and if at all I have to drop Mayank - that is the one option I might put."
It remains to be seen whether Rahul Dravid will drop veteran Ajinkya Rahane for the next Test encounter against the Kiwi unit in Mumbai.