WTC Final 2021: Aakash Chopra Lauds Ajinkya Rahane's Fighting Knock
Updated - 20 Jun 2021, 02:32 PM
Former Indian batsman Aakash Chopra was highly impressed by the way Ajinkya Rahane was ready to grind out the innings despite looking very shaky at the start. Rahane’s innings were very important in the context of the game and he came into the crease when the team was reeling at 88 for the loss of three wickets.
He never got to the pitch of the ball in the first few deliveries and was beaten a lot more times. But he never gave up and kept fighting out until the New Zealand bowlers bowled those loose deliveries. His backfoot play was really good and he started to look more confident as the day progressed. He remained unbeaten on 29 in 79 deliveries with four boundaries at the end of day two.
Aakash Chopra Pleased With Ajinkya Rahane Taking The Team Forward
The Indian vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane couldn’t move his feet when he came into the crease but he was ready to battle it out and Aakash Chopra was impressed by that. He stated that sometimes, those ugly runs could matter a lot than pretty runs and he was very happy to see Rahane taking the team forward.
“Ajinkya Rahane’s start was not good. It seemed as though he was a little stuck. You are trying but the front foot is not moving. But that’s where Ajinkya Rahane impresses us all. It is not always that you have to score the pretty runs, at times you need to score the ugly runs. When you score the ugly runs and take the team forward, that’s what matters,” Aakash Chopra said.
Aakash Chopra Stresses On Rahane’s Long Gap From Playing Competitive Cricket
Aakash Chopra highlighted the fact that Rahane hasn’t played a competitive match for a long time now and to be able to grind it out when the team needed him at most is something extraordinary. He stressed the importance of the knock from the conditions and also revealed that playing just the one format is very tough for any batsman.
“It was such a long gap where he had not played a competitive match. Here when you come, you are the vice-captain and have more than 1000 runs in the World Test Championship but this is a new game and conditions. The opposition is bowling well and your team is at 88/3,” he added.
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