Ajinkya Rahane’s Sharp Reminder From Sunil Gavaskar During India’s Battling Against South Africa

Day 1 of the first Test match between India and South Africa did not start well for the Indian cricket squad; the only player to make a half-century was KL Rahul. If it weren’t for Rahul’s hard-hitting blow, India would not have even scored 200 runs. The Indian cricket icon Sunil Gavaskar said that the squad needed someone like Ajinkya Rahane in the middle after seeing the touring batting unit’s dismal performance on Day 1 of the Centurion Test.

Rahane’s heroics from five years ago in Johannesburg were brought up by Gavaskar, who emphasised how well the experienced batsman managed the challenging pitch when other batters appeared to disintegrate.

“The pitch from the Johannesburg Test five years ago has been a topic of discussion; I was present.” Yes, the pitch wasn’t the simplest to bat against since the ball kept ascending. And in that game, Ajinkya Rahane—who had not been selected for the previous two Test matches—showed what the Indian squad had been missing, since before in the first couple of Test matches, India had not lost by significant margins.

“So maybe somebody with Rahane’s experience overseas… because Rahane overseas has been such a fine, fine player and maybe if he had been there today the story could have been completely different,” Gavaskar remarked on Star Sports.

Rahane is still among India’s most reliable international players. However, he has lost his place in the Indian Test squad during the last few of years. After an outstanding Indian Premier League 2023 season with the Chennai Super Kings, Rahane did return to the team for the World Test Championship final 2023; however, he was left out of the squad when the selectors released the roster for the South Africa trip.

Although Rahane still has the ability to perform well for the whites, the selectors seem committed to giving younger players an opportunity in an effort to build a team for the future.