CHENNAI: The air surrounding veteran batter Ajinkya Rahane is usually that of flair, composure and sedateness. Leading the India team on a few occasions, he has carved himself a place in the history of Indian cricket, especially after winning the Test match at the Gabba in Australia.
Cut to the later part of 2024, Rahane ended his Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy(SMAT) as the top run-getter, with a strike rate more than 170 while playing for Mumbai. He had justified the IPL holders Kolklata Knight Riders' late scoop in the mega auction for Rs 1.50 crore.
Although the KKR skipper is the franchises top-run getter this season, his strike rate has reached nowhere to the levels of SMAT. This could be because of KKR openers not building the platform for him to play 'his natural game.'
"You have seen me playing for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and for Mumbai in SMAT 2024. Even here (IPL 2025) I started with very good strike rate but then I had to adapt to the situation because our batters were struggling to get runs. So it's important as a batsman to adapt to the situation very quickly and then we just need to think what the team needs from you in that situation," he said during a Star Sports press room on Friday. He has a strike rate of about 120-130.
KKR had let go of Phil Salt and the change in the opening has not worked well for them. "Sunil Narine has done well in the past for us. This year, we started with Quinny (Quinton de Kock). Quinny played a very good knock. But again, he couldn't capitalise on that. He is trying hard. He is trying his best," he stated.
Venkatesh Iyer's dip in form has led to KKR's batting woes as well. One of the star performers last year, Iyer's meagre contributions of 28 runs in the last four games has not gone well with his tag of Rs 23.75 cr.
"Every player goes through that phase where, they are trying their best but the performance is not coming. We all know that he is a quality player and has won matches for the team as well. So, it's important from the leadership group's point of view to back him like we do every player," he added.
Their next two games are against already eliminated Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals. Rahane had explained how it's imperative to capitalise now as teams target play-off spots. "He is just one inning away. You can actually probably see one good inning from him in the next four games. And that probably will be the match-winning inning from his side," he concluded.