The experienced Indian batter Ajinkya Rahane is currently the centre of attention in the ongoing IPL 2023 due to his exceptional performance with the bat. The former Indian test captain has already scored 224 runs in just six matches with a strike rate of 189.83, which is the second-highest among all the players who have faced at least 100 deliveries this season.
Rahane is one of those batters who is known to build innings with his classy approach and he is not so expressive and explosive even in the shortest format of the game.
In the past 15 editions of the IPL, the opener has maintained an average strike rate of 120.7 with a total of 4074 runs. Despite this, the Chennai Super Kings team did not hesitate to spend INR 50 lakhs to acquire the services of Rahane in the IPL auction. The CEO of CSK Kasi Viswanathan explained that the decision was made based on the suggestion of captain MS Dhoni, who believed that having Rahane on the team would be beneficial.
According to a statement by Hindustan Times, Kashi Vishwanathan said,”Nothing like it if you can get him’, MS told me when I asked him, and that is why we bid for Rahane.”
Although signing Rahane was a risky decision as he had scored only 112 runs in eight matches in the previous edition of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. However, MS Dhoni kept the faith and in the ongoing season of the IPL Rahane has proved to be one of the match-winners for CSK.
Chennai Super Kings will now face Punjab Kings at MA Chidambaram Stadium on April 30.
