It's an uphill battle for Ajinkya Rahane as he seeks to secure spot in India's ODI team

Ajit Vijaykumar 11:14 26/06/2017
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  • Rahane is at ease in the Test arena but his place in the limited overs side is far from secure.

    Before the start of the West Indies ODI series, India captain Virat Kohli said Ajinkya Rahane will be tried out as an opener on a consistent basis as that is the position where the Mumbai batsman performs at his best. Rahane is in a tough spot in his career.

    After starting with a bang in international cricket in 2011, he is suffering from an identity crisis with no clarity about his role in the Indian team, at least in limited overs cricket. During the 2011 tour if England, Rahane batted with refreshing positivity to inject some life into the side that had been battered in the Test series.

    His maiden innings – in the oneoff T20 against England – he hit 61 off 39 balls opening the innings and in the first two matches of the subsequent ODI series, made 40 from 44 balls and 54 from 47 deliveries. They were staggering numbers as Rahane was not a ‘proper’ opening batsman.

    He was mainly a middle order player in the domestic circuit but looked at home opening the innings. A successful IPL in 2012 – where he scored 560 runs for Rajasthan Royals – and consistent scores in the Test arena in 2013 and 2014 made him one of the few players who was among the first names to be considered in all three formats.

    That was the case until he started to face stiff competition from Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul for the opening position in coloured clothing. Rahane was even tried out in the middle order but that didn’t work – 703 runs from 20 innings at No4 position.

    While his Test batting went from strength to strength, his limited overs form started to wobble. The Rahane we saw in the first ODI against the West Indies on Friday, which was washed out, didn’t exude the aura of a batsman who has scored fighting Test centuries in some of the toughest conditions.

    The right-handed batsman was a lot more positive in the second match but the uncertainty remains. And you can understand why.

    Currently, Dhawan is in the form of his life in white-ball cricket and is almost certain to play in the position for some time. Rohit is the main opener, as should a player who has two ODI double tons batting in that position.

    And once Rahul regains his fitness, he will walk into the team as he is the only all-format top-order player in the side. So even in Rahane piles on the runs in the Caribbean, he might be crowded out at the top. And what about further down the order?

    India’s middle has at least one, maybe two, openings but the selectors will most likely stick to the experience of MS Dhoni and/ or Yuvraj Singh with Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya and maybe a young Rishabh Pant given a run until at least one of them cements his spot. So the chances of Rahane getting a look-in there look bleak.

    And Kohli has already stated Rahane is seen as an opener, back-up or otherwise. One of the main reasons behind Rahane’s peculiar situation is that he has not quite nailed his playing style in ODIs. Is he a free-scoring batsman or someone who needs to play the entire innings?

    He is a technically efficient batsman who should ideally be batting in the top four and hold the innings together but Kohli does that job. And the other openers bat with a lot more flair. So it seems no matter what Rahane does, he will have to wait until others fail to become a first-choice player in ODIs.

    Ajinkya Rahane.

    Caribbean form: Rahane has fired at top of order. 

    For now, Rahane can only make the most of the opportunities in front of him, like his did in the second ODI against the Windies scoring a ton. At least the 29-year-old has time and fitness on his side.

    Afghanistan and Ireland gained Test status after proving their mettle over the years against all opposition. The cricketing world, however, might not be very patient as far as results in the Test format are concerned.

    When Bangladesh gained Test status in 2000, there was lot more wiggle room in international cricket at that time and teams and administrators could afford to give the Tigers time to develop their game.

    By that yardstick, a team like Ireland should have gained Test status a lot sooner. But it’s better late than never.

    However, in 2017, the international calendar is bursting at the seams and such is the paucity of space, the ICC are considering dumping the Champions Trophy just to accommodate an additional World T20.

    With slots at such a premium, Test matches against the newest entrants will be under far greater scrutiny than those against Bangladesh in early 2000s. Also, under the proposed ‘rolling Test league’ which is likely to start in 2019, teams like Ireland, Afghanistan and Zimbabwe might not get to play against the top teams on a regular basis anyhow.

    Whichever way you look at it, Test cricket’s new teams won’t find the ride anywhere near as smooth as Bangladesh did.

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