Ajinkya Rahane made a comeback into the Indian side after 18 long months in the ongoing ICC World Test Championship Final against Australia. He was dropped from the team after South Africa tour in 2021 due to his poor run of form and consistent failures. He, however, went back to domestic cricket and toiled hard.
Ajinkya Rahane’s hard work paid off as he was recalled into the Indian side for the ICC WTC Final. He made most of the opportunity and played a staggering knock in a situation where others failed. The batter bailed his side out of trouble as he played a sensational knock and kept India in the hunt.
In reply to Australia’s 469 runs, India was tumbling at 73/4. Ajinkya Rahane took the responsibility and along with Ravindra Jadeja (48) and Shardul Thakur (51) bailed their side out of trouble. He played magnificent strokes and looked solid against the likes of the Australian pacers.
In his comeback match, Ajinkya Rahane scored 89 runs and his vital contribution saw India posting 296 runs on the board and avoiding the follow-on. He was lauded by many fans and pundits for his knock.
Ricky Ponting said that Ajinkya Rahane did what was in his hands and with two Test matches slated to take in West Indies later this year, he has a real opportunity to prolong his Test career. Speaking to ICC, he said:
“He has made the most of his opportunity and that is all you can do. I think there are two more Test matches in the West Indies after this before Rahul and Iyer are back, so he has got a real opportunity to prolong his Test career for another couple of years.”
ICC WTC Final: “I am really happy to see him back out there,” Ricky Ponting on Ajinkya Rahane
Ricky Ponting further went on to say laud Ajinkya Rahane for his performances in the IPL as well and said that it was pleasing to see him shift from T20s to Test so quickly. He explained:
“I am really happy to see him back out there and playing and when you see him play like that (against Australia) you just wonder why he hasn’t been in this India team for the last couple of years. Isn’t it amazing how in this modern game. He probably got back into this Indian Test team on the back of some performances in the IPL, so well played to him.” He concluded.