Ajinkya Rahane doesn’t want to take the pressure of the tag ‘Indian captain’ which will be added to his name for the remaining three Test against Australia. He acknowledges that it will be a proud moment for him when he will be leading India for the third time in Test cricket on Boxing Day.
With Virat Kohli’s departure, Ajinkya Rahane has been given the captaincy of India. He has lead India in the previous two Test matches and the team has won both of them.
Rahane pointed out that the focus should not on him but on how the team is going to perform in the three Tests.
“It’s a proud moment for me to lead India. It’s a great opportunity, responsibility as well. I don’t want to take any pressure. What I want to do is back my teammates and my team. As a team, we want to do well so the focus is not on me is all about the team and how we want to do well as a team in Australia,” said Ajinkya Rahane.
Remaining calm under pressure: Ajinkya Rahane
Touching upon the horrid show in Adelaide, Ajinkya Rahane tried to look on the brighter side. He said that the team had one bad session but overall they are playing well.
“We are capable of doing really well. As a team, I believe that we had one bad session but we are playing some good cricket as a bowling unit and also as a batting unit. In the first innings, we batted well. Personally, I stay really calm and cool but my batting is aggressive and I back my instincts. It’s all about playing as a team from tomorrow and just giving our best,” said Ajinkya Rahane.
Ajinkya Rahane said he has learned the skill of backing his strength and remaining calm. He further shed light on his fielding position set to remain the same, despite his new role as skipper.
“Backing your instincts as a captain, remaining calm under pressure and just backing your own strengths and methods is what I learned from that Test match. I generally stand at gully, even as a captain and you will see me standing there tomorrow as well,” the Mumbaikar added.
Virat Kohli has returned back home to attend the birth of his first child. His absence is surely going to be a huge loss for the visitors. However, remaining positive is the only mantra left for India to beat Australia.