'He's captained India... won't get a better team man. Even if he has to carry water': Shastri's tremendous praise
Ravi Shastri had words of appreciation for the Team India star who made an excellent start to his IPL 2023 season last week.
The Chennai Super Kings have made a bright start to their 2023 Indian Premier League campaign; since facing an opening-day defeat to Gujarat Titans, the CSK registered resounding wins over Lucknow Super Giants and Mumbai Indians. While Ruturaj Gaikwad has been a consistent performer with the bat in all of the side's three matches, CSK's spinners have been significantly better than their pace attack so far. In the side's previous game, however, one of its standout performers – in a surprise to many – was Ajinkya Rahane, who had made his debut for the Super Kings.
Rahane had made his way into the XI after CSK were forced to play without Ben Stokes (injury) and Moeen Ali (unwell). Chasing a 158-run target at the Wankhede Stadium, Rahane launched an explosive attack on Mumbai Indians bowlers, scoring a brilliant 61 off just 27 deliveries; he hit seven fours and three sixes en route the knock.
The Indian batter isn't particularly known for his big-hitting and there were questions over CSK's decision to pick Rahane in the auction last year; however, it has been ‘so far, so good’ for the side. Former India head coach Ravi Shastri, who has worked closely with Rahane in the Indian dressing room, expressed his delight at Rahane's performance against MI and heaped massive praise on the senior batter.
“I loved Ajinkya Rahane's innings. He was our captain in Australia, where I saw one of the greatest overseas hundreds by an Indian player. That will go right up with the very best, simply because of where India were at the start of the innings. He had taken over as captain, we were 36 all-out. On Boxing Day , to play like that, was fantastic,” Shastri told ESPNCricinfo.
“The timing, it was the purity of the innings was a treat to the eyes (against MI). Lovely shots, I'm glad for him. He's such a team man. He's captained India, whichever franchise or team he plays for, he might not be captain but you can be rest assured, you won't get a better team man. Even if it comes to carrying water, or in dressing room, helping out someone. He's a top-class example of the way the game should be played,” Shastri further said.
Rahane is currently out-of-favour with the Indian Test team, having last played for the side in January 2022. He was dropped following a series of inconsistent performances in the longest format of the game.
Rahane is expected to return to action on Wednesday night when the CSK take on Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur.