WTC final: Which Indian batsman has the most runs in the league phase?
Ajinkya Rahane would not have impressed many with his average outings in recent Tests, but he still holds the distinction of being the Indian batsman with the most runs in the league phase of the WTC.
Rahane scored 1095 runs in 28 innings at an average of 43.80. He was followed by Rohit Sharma with 1030 runs from 17 innings.
The focus for the Test vice-captain will now be the upcoming World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand. This will be followed by a stiff five-match Test series against England.
Ajinkya Rahane's numbers in Tests
Rahane is just 417 runs away from reaching 5000 runs in Test cricket. He currently has 4583 runs at an average of 41.29 and boasts a high score of 188. He made headlines when he made his T20 debut in 2011 against England with a knock of 61 runs off 39 balls. Soon after, the Mumbai batsman established himself as one of the vital cogs in the Team India setup.
Following their 3-1 series triumph over England at home earlier this year, India finished as the No.1 side in the WTC points table. Virat Kohli's men recorded 72.2 percentage points, booking a date with Kane Williamson's formidable Kiwi side in the WTC final.
Upon completion of the WTC final, India will take on England in a grueling five-match Test series, which starts on August 4. A separate Indian squad minus the big names will tour Sri Lanka in the meantime for a limited series comprising of three ODIs and as many T20Is.
Squad for the WTC final and the England series:
Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (Captain), Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), R. Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Mohd. Shami, Md. Siraj, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, KL Rahul (subject to fitness clearance), Wriddhiman Saha (wicket-keeper; subject to fitness clearance).
New Zealand for WTC final: Kane Williamson (captain), Tom Blundell, Trent Boult, Tim Southee, Doug Bracewell, Devon Conway, Colin de Grandhomme, Jacob Duffy, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Ajaz Patel, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Ross Taylor, Neil Wagner, BJ Watling, and Will Young.
Standby players:
Abhimanyu Easwaran, Prasidh Krishna, Avesh Khan, Arzan Nagwaswalla