Team India cricketer Ajinkya Rahane’s captaincy will always be held in high regard. He led the team to a historic series win against Australia in the 2020-21 Border Gavaskar Trophy. The right-handed batter is often assumed to be a soft character. However, former India fielding coach R Sridhar recalled an incident, which shows Ajinkya Rahane’s strong leadership.
Before the 2020-21 Border Gavaskar Trophy, Team India played a practice game in Drummoyne, Sydney. In his book ‘Coaching Beyond’, former India fielding coach R Sridhar recalled an interesting incident from the game when Ajinkya Rahane called Prithvi Shaw’s bluff. He wrote.
“There was this incident when Prithvi Shaw was fielding at short leg in a warm-up game in Drummoyne, Sydney. The batter went for a sweep and Prithvi got smacked. As he tried to limp off the park towards the dressing room, Ajinkya was quickly on his case. From his position at slip, he had clearly seen exactly where Prithvi had been hit, which was on the shin pad.”
“Rahane went up to him and said firmly, ‘Don’t take one more step. No one will replace you on the field. I know nothing’s wrong with you, I saw the ball hit you on your shin pad. Maybe you were waiting for an opportunity to go back inside, but that’s not happening. Go back to short leg and get into position’. Prithvi knew his bluff had been called and subtly, Ajinkya had told the rest that he would brook no shenanigans. I was mightily relieved as I was the one slated to go in as substitute as we had only XI for that game,” he added.
Ajinkya Rahane can be firm when he has to be without being harsh: R Sridhar
Former fielding coach R Sridhar hailed Ajinkya Rahane’s leadership. He highlighted why the Indian cricketer has such a good captaincy record. The Mumbai batter has led India in six Tests, winning four of them, and two ending in a draw. R Sridhar expressed that Ajinkya Rahane is “easy-going and approachable”. He added that the senior players start chipping in more under him. The former fielding coach wrote,
“Ajinkya can be firm when he has to be without being harsh, which is why India has such a good record under him. he has led the team in four Tests against Australia and India have won three of them, including two away from home. That’s a fantastic record for someone who doesn’t get to captain often, or in a string of games. He understands the game very well. He is very easy-going and approachable, and I got the sense that the senior players feel a greater sense of responsibility when he is the captain; they start chipping in more.”
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