Two years on, Rahane finds himself out of India’s Test squad. He has played a Test match in January this year, but he isn’t giving up hope of a comeback, however tough it may be. With Australia set to tour India in February for four Tests early next year, Rahane is keeping himself in the fray by doing the next best thing: score runs in domestic cricket.
“I don’t want to prove anything to anyone,” Rahane said, when asked about where he thinks his career is at. “I think my competition is with myself. If I stick to that, things will fall into place. I don’t want to run after anything… just want to back my game.”
“You always have a memory of good things you have done…how you used to play, what was your style, how much did you shuffle, what was the initial movement. Over the years the changes creep into the game…I think these changes are for good as well as we play matches in different countries. But if I have to score runs consistently, I thought I will refer to old Ajinkya’s batting and try to implement it.”
Ajinkya Rahane
“There is no point in being disappointed as things are not in my control,” he said. “For me, my attitude matters the most. Because of my attitude and my work ethic, I have managed to reach this stage of my life and now I don’t want to change anything.”
For someone who is seemingly at peace, Rahane believes his mindset while batting now is similar to what it was many years ago, when a “fearless” young batter broke through the ranks for Mumbai.
“You always have a memory of good things you have done…how you used to play, what was your style, how much did you shuffle, what was the initial movement,” he explained. “Over the years the changes creep into the game…I think these changes are for good as well as we play matches in different countries. But if I have to score runs consistently, I thought I will refer to old Ajinkya’s batting and try to implement it.”
Rahane disagreed with the view that issues that had crept into his game leading to his loss of form. Instead, he cited challenging home pitches for the dip in his average and runs. In 28 innings since the MCG ton, Rahane managed just three half-centuries.
“If we look at the averages, they have gone down because of the wickets, because as a batter it is always challenging,” he said. “For openers, it is easy, especially in India when the ball is hard. When batters get out, we always think about what mistakes they are committing. But then No. 3-4-5 – [Cheteshwar] Pujara, Virat and me… all of our averages have gone down.
“So, I don’t think I was committing any mistakes. Yes, as a player I always focus on where to improve but every time we don’t commit mistakes, sometimes the wickets are such…it’s not an excuse but that’s the reality. Everyone was watching so they know what kind of wickets were prepared in India.”
