Ajinkya Rahane Responds After Being Snubbed For T20I Series

After scoring four half-centuries on the trot, getting axed from the T20I team was the last thing Ajinkya Rahane would have wanted. However, the Mumbai star could not do much apart from working hard and he has no complains with it.

The right-handed batsman is the third choice opener in the team and after he got the chance to open the innings against Australia in the absence of Shikhar Dhawan, he grabbed it with both the hands, scoring 5, 55, 70, 53, 61 in 5 innings. Earlier, he was adjudged Man of the Series on the West Indies tour for finishing the series as its highest run-scorer.

But despite his impressive performance, he did not get  a place in the squad for the upcoming three-match T20I series against Australia while the likes of  Shikhar Dhawan, Dinesh Karthik and Ashish Nehra were included. However, the 29-year old is not much disappointed with the snub and said that he respects the selectors’ decision.

“Yes, so much cricket we play, the team management, selectors take a decision and we respect it. Speaking about the competition, it is necessary and it helps you to give your best performance. Whoever gets a chance does well for the team. I have always enjoyed the competition,” Rahane told reporters in Mumbai.

The 29-year-old added that he would aim to convert his 50s into 100s in the future.

“Yes, I am happy. The responsibility and the opportunity I was given, the way I was supposed to bat, I did. Definitely, I am happy with the form I have carried from the West Indies tour, I have made four consecutive fifties,” he said.

He further rued his failure to convert his starts into centuries and vowed to correct the mistakes when the next opportunity arrives.

“I could have converted the fifties into hundreds. It was in my mind to contribute, I shared three 100-run stands with Rohit (Sharma) and our aim was to give a good start to the team. In the future series if I get a chance I will convert the 50s into 100s,” he said.