Enjoy wise captaincy
Rahane happy to take the back seat as Kohli returns
CHENNAI:
When the chips were down in the India dressing room post the horror show in Adelaide, the then stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane picked up the pieces and later went on to pull off a monumental triumph Down Under with the help of his teammates.
The 32-year-old Rahane, who took charge of captaincy for the final three Tests against host Australia, made his way into the history books by guiding India to a 2-1 series victory. But with regular skipper Virat Kohli returning to the squad for the four-match Test series against England, Rahane has been restored as vice-captain.
And, the batting-order mainstay is more than happy to hand back the baton of captaincy to Kohli, who will lead the home side in the series opener, starting Friday at the MA Chidambaram Stadium here. “My job is easy. I will take the back seat and help Virat,” said Rahane during a video conference after India’s training session on Wednesday.
“Too many things run in a captain’s mind. So as a vice-captain, I will have to visualise the situation and think about what could happen next in the game. And if the captain asks me for suggestions, I should be ready,” added the soft-spoken Rahane.
“I will go and give inputs whenever required or whenever Virat asks me about certain things. I generally take the back seat when I am the vice-captain.” Rahane lifted India to another new high during a series of highs on Australian soil, but assured that the team would not dwell on the past and be complacent heading into the England assignment.
“We know that every game and every series is really important, especially with the World Test Championship (WTC) on. What happened in
Australia was special, but we don’t have to think too much about anything. We know our strengths and how the Indian pitches will behave. But we respect England, which did well in Sri Lanka,” he said.
Despite scoring truckloads of runs for the national team around the globe, Rahane hasn’t been at his fluent best against England both home and away. However, the Mumbai-based batter opined that
he is in fine touch after a successful outing in Australia.
“A few adjustments are needed in my game, but I am batting really well. I need to assess what is required at that particular situation and bat accordingly. For me, it is about contributing to the team rather than thinking about my own performance. I will give my 100 per cent and I feel really good about my batting,” signed off Rahane.
I am batting really well and feeling good. For me, it is about contributing to the team rather than thinking about my own performance
Ajinkya Rahane, India vice-captain