NEW DELHI: Kolkata Knight Riders captain Ajinkya Rahane attributes his success in the Indian Premier League and domestic Twenty20 matches to playing “fearless cricket” while maintaining composure.
At a strike rate of 164.56, the 36-year-old scored 469 runs, including five half-centuries, to top the batting rankings in the previous edition of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. In the IPL, where he was the Chennai Super Kings’ batting mainstay for the last two seasons, his aggressive style also paid dividends.
“It was always about being an anchor and the others would play around me. (But the) last 2-3 years, it’s always about playing with freedom, fearless cricket and go out and back my game,” Rahane, the brand ambassador of Skillhub Online Games Federation, said in Mumbai on Tuesday.
“I am trying to do that (play fearless cricket) but it’s (also) about following my processes and routines and staying loyal and truthful to the game.”
Rahane, who made 467 runs and guided Mumbai to the Ranji Trophy semifinal, stated that he would bring the confidence he has gained from domestic cricket to the next IPL season.
“For me, personally, batting-wise I am doing really well. Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy was really good for me, I had a really good domestic season. So, I am really confident about myself,” he said.
“It is just about staying in the moment, staying calm and keep backing myself, not to think too much ahead and not to think about the past. It’s always about improving and enjoying my game,” he added.
Rahane said that India’s triumph in Tuesday’s Champions Trophy semifinal in Dubai was also due to the team’s decision to move on from its history versus Australia in ICC tournament knockout stages.
Since the 2011 World Cup quarterfinal in India, India had never defeated Australia in the ICC competition knockout stages until Rohit Sharma‘s team prevailed by four wickets.
Australia defeated India in the 2023 World Cup final, the 2023 World Test Championship final, and the 2015 Cricket World Cup semifinal.
“Very happy that India has won the semifinal against Australia and have entered the final. I want to congratulate the team and I am sure they will do well in the final,” Rahane said.
“What happened in the past is gone, the team must be thinking about the present and their aim was to beat Australia… to beat them in the semifinal.
“Obviously, what has happened in the past keeps playing on the mind but, as a cricketer, your mind is always in the moment, in the present, to do well in that game to win the match,” Rahane said.
Ahead of the forthcoming IPL season, Rahane, who was named captain of KKR, stated that he wants the reigning IPL winners to keep it simple.
“Our team is really good, everyone is playing really well. We had a camp in Mumbai, all the domestic players were here but international players are also playing which is really good,” he said.
“We won the championship last year but again this year it is about starting from the scratch, starting from zero. T20 is a funny format and IPL is a challenging tournament.
“I am happy and humbled to be captain of the KKR team. We would like to keep it simple, take one game at a time and stay in the moment and enjoy the format,” Rahane added.
