WI vs IND | Always knew a hundred was around the corner for Ajinkya Rahane, says Pravin Amre
Getty
Former Indian cricketer Pravin Amre has said that he was always confident of his protege Ajinkya Rahane turning things around, post the batsman's century at Antigua. Furthermore, Amre also said that Rohit Sharma deserved an opportunity for his showing at the World Cup which saw him score 5 hundreds.
It was a long time coming, but Ajinkya Rahane finally answered his critics in style as the middle-order batsman struck a sublime century in the second innings of the Antigua Test to guide his side towards victory. Prior to the start of the series, Rahane's place in the team was questioned by many an expert, but the Mumbaikar put all doubts to bed with his performance which saw him score a total of 183 runs across two innings.
His performance encouraged praise from his personal coach Pravin Amre, who said that his success was just a reflection of the hard work he had put in over the last two years.
“God is kind. It was really his hard work because the past two years haven’t been easy for him (Rahane). I will give him the credit for the way he handled himself. He was never frustrated and worked hard," Amre told Sportstar.
The leg-spinner, who represented India in 11 Tests and 37 ODIs, also opined that he felt Rohit Sharma deserved a shot for his showing at the World Cup, but at the same time insisted that he was happy to see Rahane repay the faith the selectors showed in him.
“I felt sorry for Rohit. I personally feel Rohit should have been given opportunity also after scoring those five hundreds. We know that he is a player capable of doing great things. But overall the team management backed Ajinkya and he returned that faith, which is important from Ajinkya’s prospective,” Amre said.
Rahane narrowly missed out on twin centuries in the Antigua Test as he was dismissed for 81 in the first innings, but Amre said that the knock was a very important one from the team's perspective and that it also gave the 31-year-old some much-needed confidence heading into the second innings. Amre also added that he was always confident that a hundred was around a corner for the Indian vice-captain.
“The 81 he hit in the first innings was so crucial from the team’s perspective. That innings was motivating for him. Even though he did not get a hundred, still he played crucial innings in England and South Africa. Apart from Sri Lanka, he has done very well.
"I was sure the hundred was around the corner,” he said.
