Ajinkya Rahane has emerged as the most consistent player for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) this season. Beyond his solid performances with the bat, he has also stood out as a leader, guiding the defending champions to three victories so far. Acquired at his base price of INR 2 crore in the IPL auction, Rahane was appointed captain after Shreyas Iyer’s exit.
He has accumulated 206 runs at an impressive strike rate of 154.54, placing him sixth on the Orange Cap leaderboard. KKR delivered a dominant performance against CSK on their home turf, with Rahane once again leading from the front. Moeen Ali was brought into the XI and made an impact early, troubling the CSK top order and claiming the key wicket of Devon Conway.
🗣️ "𝙅𝙞𝙣𝙠𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙖 𝙧𝙤𝙡𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙙𝙚𝙡 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙗𝙤𝙙𝙮 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙗𝙖𝙩𝙨𝙢𝙖𝙣" 🫡💪 pic.twitter.com/auEyTc4ZXw
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) April 12, 2025
In a video uploaded by the official X handle of KKR, he said:
“Quite often, when I’m working with teams with young players, we often look at our role models. We often look in another team for somebody else, and it might be MS Dhoni, it might be Kohli.”
”Jinks (Rahane) is a role model for everybody here in this dressing room as a batter. And I’ll tell you why. I believe that when we set up the roster everyday, Jinks wants 20 minutes, no bowlers, some little bubble feeds from us and throws from the throwers.”
Ajinkya Rahane Earns Praise Following Commanding Win Over CSK
Rahane orchestrated a superb bowling display, with the KKR spinners collectively claiming six wickets and putting the five-time champions on the back foot. Following the match, KKR assistant coach Ottis Gibson showered praise on the captain, describing him as a role model on par with the likes of MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli.
Gibson also highlighted Ajinkya Rahane‘s focus on playing to his strengths, noting that he consistently aims to keep his shots along the ground.
“He never hits in the air. On the floor. Then when the game starts, he knows what his technique is. His strike-rate is above 150. He practices what he wants to play everyday.”
”And when he bats with us in the middle, he has a certain confidence and certain calmness on he goes about his business. He’s a role model for the young guys. We should pay attention to the way he goes about his business.”
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