Ravi Shastri recalls Ajinkya Rahane’s century at MCG after 36 all-out
Ravi Shastri – Ajinkya Rahane (Source – Twitter)
Former Indian cricket team coach Ravi Shastri heaped praise on Ajinkya Rahane for his performance for Chennai Super Kings in the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League. Rahane was rested in the first two games against Gujarat Lions and Lucknow Super Giants. After that, he went on to smash the second-fastest half-century against Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede stadium. The 34-year-old got out after smashing 61 off 27 in a chase of 158 runs.
Shastri has spent a lot of time with Rahane in the dressing room during his coaching tenure for the Indian team. The former cricketer applauded Rahane for his performance and called him a ‘team man.’ Apart from this, Shastri also recalled Rahane century in the Boxing Day Test at MCG Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2020-21. The knock came after India were bowled out for just 36 runs in the first Test in Adelaide and they were rest of the series without their regular skipper Virat Kohli. India went on to win that series by 2-1 and scripted one of the greatest comebacks in the history of cricket.
‘You won’t get a better team man’ – Shastri
“I loved Ajinkya Rahane’s innings. He was our captain in Australia, where I saw one of the greatest overseas hundreds by an Indian player. That will go right up with the very best, simply because of where India were at the start of the innings. He had taken over as captain, we were 36 all-out. On Boxing Day, to play like that, was fantastic,” Shastri told ESPNCricinfo.
“The timing, it was the purity of the innings was a treat to the eyes (against MI). Lovely shots, I’m glad for him. He’s such a team man. He’s captained India, whichever franchise or team he plays for, he might not be captain but you can be rest assured, you won’t get a better team man. Even if it comes to carrying water, or in the dressing room, helping out someone. He’s a top-class example of the way the game should be played,” he further added.
CSK bought Rahane for the base price of INR 50 lakh in the 2023 auction. He has scored 92 runs so far in two games he played in the ongoing season. CSK have won two matches and lost two out of four games played so far. They will now take on Royal Challengers Bangalore at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on April 17th.
