Ajinkya Rahane names his daughter 'Aarya'; shares her picture on Instagram

One of the reasons why Team India is the No.1 ranked side in the world is because of its middle-order. Yep! You guessed it right- The troika of Cheteshwar Pujara, captain Virat Kohli and vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane. If Pujara doesn’t get you, Kohli and Rahane will, and vice versa. They always do. They are the heartbeat of the Test side. They are the soul of the beautiful body that masquerades as a Test-match unit.

And, India is blessed! Remember at the turn of the decade, what the biggest fear for the Indian fans would be? What after the Fab-4: Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman retire? Will India be able to find a good Test match batsman, let alone the replacements of the aforementioned great. Then, came along Cheteshwar Pujara (vs Australia in Bengaluru in 2010), someone who was referred to as a reflection of the Wall, Rahul Dravid, purely because of his patience and tenacity.

Pujara was quickly followed by the incarnation of Sachin Tendulkar in the form of Virat Kohli in the summer of 2011 against the West Indies. And, finally, two seasons later, came along the modern-day savior of Indian Test cricket, and the closest reflection to the Very Very Special man himself, VVS Laxman.

Rahane is a peculiar character. He is a crisis man; someone whose best always tends to come out whenever his team is in trouble in obscure conditions. Durban 2013, Lord’s 2014, Wellington and MCG 2014, Bengaluru 2017, Johannesburg 2018 and the most-recent Antigua & Ranchi Test matches.

Take the example of the Antigua Test. Team India had lost 3/25 and was tottering in good bowling conditions against the likes of Kemar Roach and Jason Holder. Or the Ranchi Test where he came under a similar situation with the score reading: 3/39. What does Rahane do? He puts the attack back on the opposition; hits hundreds in both cases and puts his team into a driver’s seat.

Ajinkya Rahane shares his new-born daughter’s first picture

This has been a special season for Rahane thus far. Apart from his on-field performances, the right-hander has also been blessed with a baby girl. Taking to Instagram on Thursday, the Indian vice-captain shared the baby girl’s first picture besides also announcing her name- Aarya Ajinkya Rahane.