‘If Ajinkya Rahane had been there today..’- Sunil Gavaskar analyses India’s batting performance against SA

In the opening Test against South Africa in Centurion, the Indian batters struggled to get going as the Rohit Sharma-led side finished on 208/8 on Day 1. KL Rahul was the lone warrior with the bat as he ended the day on an unbeaten 70 while the likes of Virat Kohli (38) and Shreyas Iyer (31) got the starts but failed to convert them. On the other hand, Shubman Gill once again struggled on a difficult pitch and following which India’s batting in overseas conditions is once again under the scanner.

Speaking about the same, former India cricketer Sunil Gavaskar recalled Ajinkya Rahane’s exploits five years back in similar conditions and added that had he been there on Boxing Day, the story could have been different. Gavaskar mentioned that the 35-year-old is a fine player in overseas conditions as he can bat in challenging situations.

“People have been talking about the pitch in the Johannesburg Test five years back and I was there. Yeah, it wasn't the easiest of pitches to bat on the odd ball was climbing up. And Ajinkya Rahane, who had not been picked for the first two Test matches, was picked for that game and he showed what the Indian team had missed because earlier on in the first couple of Test matches India did not lose by big margins.

“So maybe somebody with Rahane's experience overseas... because Rahane overseas has been such a fine, fine player and maybe if he had been there today the story could have been completely different,” Gavaskar said while commentating on Star Sports.

Notably, Rahane lost his place to Shreyas Iyer in the Test team. When the latter was injured during the World Test Championship and the West Indies series, the Ashwi-born batter was called up to the national team and was also handed the leadership role in the bilateral series. However, Rahane couldn’t cement his place in the playing XI and is once again dropped from red-ball cricket.