Mumbai, Mar 30 (PTI) Dismissive of the never-ending speculation around his future, experienced India batter and Kolkata Knight Riders captain Ajinkya Rahane says he is playing cricket for personal growth and not to prove a point to the naysayers.
The 37-year-old Rahane had stepped down from Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy captaincy last season and he also did not lead the side in white-ball domestic competitions. The move triggered another round of chatter around the future of the batter, who hasn’t played for India since 2023.
“Let people talk about me. They have been talking about me since like what, 20 years now. Let them talk,” Rahane told reporters when asked if his 40-ball 67 with five sixes and three fours against Mumbai Indians here on Sunday was in any way a statement especially for those in Mumbai’s cricket circuit.
“I am really happy with the way I am batting at the moment. I am not here to show anyone how talented I am and what’s my game. People are watching. Let them watch. Let them talk,” he said.
“But I am really happy, in the last 2-3 years, (in the) white ball formats (with) the way I have improved my game. It’s important to grow as a cricketer, as a batsman, and that’s what I am trying to do. People will keep talking and let them talk,” he added.
Rahane confirmed he only suffered with cramps during the second half of the contest which KKR lost by six wickets.
“I was just cramping. It’s a very bad feeling to sit outside with the cramps and you don’t have any control when the bowlers were bowling, it’s a bad feeling but first I’m really happy the way I batted,” he said.
Rahane credited Jasprit Bumrah for producing another tight spell towards the end which prevented KKR to get the total they were eyeing.
“We all thought initially 220 (220/4) was a good total, we were on the path to get around 235-240 but those two overs from Bumrah made a lot of difference, you know why he’s such a great bowler,” he said.
Rahane said KKR’s inexperienced bowling attack will need time to improve but the team combination would change only when Australian all-rounder Cameron Green is available to bowl. Green is nursing a back issue right now.
“With our bowling attack, the guys are really inexperienced. Vaibhav (Arora), who did well in the last year, he’s actually leading the attack and then (we have) Karthik Tyagi and (Blessing) Muzarabani, though he has played international cricket but the IPL experience is completely different,” Rahane said.
“It is challenging because our bowlers are injured. But again, there is an opportunity for other players to show up and do really well and make a name for themselves.
“As I said, Karthik, Vaibhav, Muzarabani, Saurabh (Dubey), we got Umran (Malik) as well. Navdeep Saini, who has been really impressive during practise sessions and matches. Unfortunately, Cameron Green cannot bowl at this moment. When he starts bowling, the combination will be slightly different,” he added.
With Indian mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy enduring another tough day on the field to return figures of 4-0-48-0, Rahane said it is important for him to not think about this phase too much.
“Every player goes through this phase. His attitude is completely right; probably, opposition batters are playing him really well,” Rahane said.
“Coming from a high-intensity tournament to another high-intensity tournament, it is challenging for any cricketer mentally. My only thing is (that) he should not think too much about what is happening,” he added, referring to a tough T20 World Cup campaign he endured just a few weeks ago. PTI DDV PM DDV PM PM
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