Ajinkya Rahane, after an impressive IPL 2023 season, made a stunning return to the Indian Test team following a year in the wilderness. His strong performances in the World Test Championship final against Australia at The Oval earned him praise from the selectors. However, concerns over his consistency resurfaced during the West Indies series, where he struggled to find form. Former India opener Wasim Jaffer believes that Rahane needs to show more consistency in his game to secure a spot in the team and potentially emerge as a captaincy option after Rohit Sharma.
Despite Rahane’s impressive performances in the World Test Championship final, his inconsistent form has been a concern. This inconsistency was the primary reason for his omission from the team in February 2022. The ongoing West Indies series has brought back concerns over his ability to maintain consistency and perform consistently at the highest level.
India’s batting coach, Vikram Rathour, has supported Rahane, backing him for the team’s next tour to South Africa at the end of 2023. However, reports suggest that Shreyas Iyer might return to the team during the Asia Cup, adding competition for Rahane’s spot in the lineup.
“Rahane will have to show consistency in his game, which has been his problem even though he has played 80-90 Tests (84). Consistency has been an issue, he will have to overcome it because India have a good captaincy option in him after Rohit Sharma is done. Rahane will have to make runs, and then everything else will follow,” he said.
Wasim Jaffer expressed his concerns over Rahane’s performance on the West Indies tour. He emphasized the importance of consistency in Rahane’s game and highlighted that India sees him as a potential captaincy option after Rohit Sharma. Jaffer believes that if Rahane can overcome his consistency issues and score runs consistently, he can not only secure his spot in the team but also emerge as a leadership option for the future.
“If his form was great from that Australia series after that 36 all-out, the way he led, scored a hundred in Melbourne… had his form remained the same, he would have been the next Test captain. But he lost his form and got dropped,” he said.
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Jaffer regretted Rahane’s missed opportunity to elevate himself as India’s captain during his poor run of form after the 36 all-out debacle. Despite his impressive leadership during the Australia series, Rahane’s form declined, leading to his omission from the team. However, his reinvention during the IPL and subsequent performances earned him vice-captaincy for the Test team.
“However, he reinvented himself in the IPL and got a chance in the WTC final. He was appointed the vice-captain as well, because the Indian selectors see a good leader in him. He still has age on his side but he needs to score runs, if he does not then he will find it difficult,” he added.
