India started the 5-ODI series against New Zealand with a bang at Dharamsala. They were clinical with ball and seldom looked out of sorts while chasing a below-par target of 191. This was a team effort by a relatively inexperienced bunch pitted against a side that has recently become more consistent in the 50-overs format. The selectors have rested some key players before a gruelling home season and given have chances to newcomers and less-exposed players. In between, there is one man, a senior but muddled in between. Ajinkya Rahane, India’s vice-captain in Tests, needs this series to cement his place in ODIs before competition in the line-up forces his ouster.
Rahane- India’s seasoned performer in Tests, yet to be an ODI specialist:
Ever since the famed and reputed Fab Four: Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Sourav Ganguly (some may debate over his inclusion in the mix) hung their boots, it was always going to be difficult for the younger lot to follow their path, leave alone matching them. However, India found a batch of talented budding cricketers in the form of Virat Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara, Rohit Sharma, Murali Vijay and Rahane. Though Rohit is still not at his best in Tests, the other three have made their marks.
Rahane made his debut in Test cricket against Australia in 2012-13. He failed to create much impact, but come 2014 and his bat did all talking. India were on the road for most of 2014, travelling to New Zealand, South Africa, England and Australia in 2014-15. Rahane started the onslaught in the second Test in Durban with a fine 96. He handled Morne Morkel, Vernon Philander and Dale Steyn with aplomb as India hovered near a defeat. He missed a hundred and India lost but Rahane rose in stature. His scored runs at 61.14 with 11 fours and 2 sixes. He compiled 56 runs in boundaries, showing that he did not want to be restricted to Tests but be a part of other formats as well.
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Rahane scored his second Test hundred in swinging conditions of New Zealand to carry his form. His best innings came at Lord’s during India’s tour of England in 2014. With India on the mat at 145 for 7, Rahane again played as if he was batting on a different turf. He displayed shots on all corners of the park, flicking boundaries at a brisk rate. Again, the most astonishing fact was his strike rate, in excess of 65, against the likes of James Anderson and Stuart Broad on a pitch with grass. His 103 was cherished for long as India went onto win a dramatic Test at the iconic ground.
He was striking the ball well in Australia later that year, and got to his third hundred at MCG against the pace of Mitchell Johnson, accuracy of Josh Hazlewood and seam bowling of Ryan Harris. They pitched short; he pulled nonchalantly to send ball to the ropes. Rahane was ready to take the ball at his chest and kept fighting. Rahane had, by then, made a place in whites. Till date, Rahane has five more centuries and the number promises to increase in future. After all this fanfare, Rahane is still not a force to reckon with in coloured clothings.
With technique no issue, answers lies within:
Rahane is a sweet timer of the ball, gets runs at an acceptable pace (even in Tests), but has still earned an image of a ‘Test’ cricketer. Quick between the wickets, he believes in keeping the scoreboard ticking and plays according to the field. Thanks to gruelling sessions at Pravin Amre’s Academy, Rahane has the abilities to be considered in all formats. Yet, after featuring in 68 ODIs, he is India’s makeshift opener who steps in only if one of Rohit and Shikhar Dhawan gets injured. He possesses an average of 33.21. With India contemplating a lot of changes in the middle-order and opening slot set, Rahane is in a fix to enjoy a long run in ODIs.
The most baffling factor remains that Rahane does not have an issue in his batting. He looks confident whenever he comes to bat. During India’s last group stage match in ICC World T20 2014 against Australia, Rahane replaced a struggling Dhawan in the Playing XI. He scored 19 off 16 balls and followed it up with a promising 32 off 30 in an intense semi-final against South Africa. In both innings he showed he was not wasting time warming benches. He adapted well and if he had not thrown his wicket after a start, it would have been him leading India to victory. Nonetheless, like Virat Kohli always does, took it upon himself to bail India out.
That has been the difference. Rahane is very much akin to play all formats but is still not a ‘specialist’ in shorter formats. In World T20 2016 Rahane gad again replaced a lacklustre Dhawan on the night of semi-final against West Indies and stood his ground. A 34-ball 40 was by no means slow but not impactful.
Rahane, being a complete player, has still not played a match-winning innings in ODIs. On the other hand, his contemporaries like Kohli, Rohit or Dhawan have plenty of such knocks in their ODI career. To top it all, KL Rahul is improving with every game in all formats and itching close to Rahane’s usual No. 4 slot. Even Manish Pandey, batting at his position, played a stunner in the fifth ODI against Australia at SCG in January 2016. If Pandey clicks in this ongoing series, Rahane may face some the heat in future.
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Even in the first ODI against New Zealand, Rahane was looking rock solid and had reached his average score of 33 before he needlessly edged one to the wicketkeeper. It would have been pleasant to see him guide India to the winning score instead of the usual Kohli-special. A player like Kohli, or even Rohit, have done more than enough. Rahane needs to step up and play some impactful knocks rather than chipping in with 30s or 40s. Contrary to beliefs, he is not slow in pacing his innings with a modest strike-rate of 79.83 but big innings have always been away from his grasp.
One may recall the blinder Rahane played in India’s second game in World Cup 2015 against South Africa. His 79 off 60 balls was full of aggression filed with cricketing shots thereby showing his class. Had he scored a century and stayed till the last over, he would have surely hogged all the limelight over centurion, Dhawan. Well, this has been Rahane’s story in limited-overs. He does seem to be doing everything right but still remains away from being called ‘impactful’. In India’s last bilateral series in South Africa, he had two back-to-back half-centuries and had enough time to notch up big scores but faded away. Had he scored centuries, India might have have won the series and people would have remembered him more for tons than 30-40s or fifties.
Being a quality player, one expects Rahane to turn the tides in the series against New Zealand. He needs to stop adding pressure on his shoulders to play a big knock and be in the moment. At times he looks in hurry and suddenly, against the run of play, throws his wicket when set. With India scheduled to play only 7 more matches in the run-up to ICC Champions Trophy 2017, Rahane needs to buck up or else fate may have something else in store for him.
(Aditya Sahay is a journalist with CricketCountry who is completely into sports and loves writing about cricket in general. He can be followed on Twitter at adisahay7)