'You need to capitalize on first six overs' - Ajinkya Rahane after scoring blistering 98 in semifinal of SMAT

Ajinkya Rahane continued his golden touch as Mumbai won semifinal 1 of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024 against Baroda at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on October 13. Mumbai skipper, Shreyas Iyer won the toss and opted to bowl first. They restricted Baroda to a meagre total of 158/7 and it was an Ajinkya show thereafter. 

He opened the innings alongside Prithvi Shaw and after the latter’s wicket, shifted the gears. Paired up with Iyer, he scored at a quick pace and dealt in boundaries. His innings included 11 boundaries and five maximums as fell two runs short of a century with 98 runs off 56 balls to his name at a strike rate of 175. After the game, he credited his golden run to having “the positive intent and playing for the team."

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“Really happy with the way I am batting. Happy we won the match, hundreds will keep happening but it is about winning matches, keeping a positive intent and playing for the team. The way the T20 is moving, you need to capitalize on the first six overs. I was batting at number 4 initially but I was told by the team management to open the batting, and I realise it is important to capitalize in the powerplay,” said Rahane.

“We have batters who can tonk the ball all around the ground later on, so that makes my job easier. We sit together during our practice sessions and we like to have one-on-one sessions, our job is to share our experience and give the youngsters that freedom,” he added. 

Mumbai have reached the finals of the tournament and will await their finalist, which will be decided in the semifinal 2 between Delhi and Madhya Pradesh. For the unversed, the finals of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy will be played at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on December 15.