Ajinkya Rahane recalls Rahul Dravid's advice from 2009 that 'motivated' and 'inspired' him

Ajinkya Rahane recently opened up on the advice he received from Rahul Dravid when the former was making his mark in domestic cricket in 2009. Dravid urged Rahane to keep focussing on his batting instead of running after the Team India jersey. The 33-year-old added that the advice 'motivated' and 'inspired' him to continue doing well on the domestic circuit.

Ajinkya Rahane eventually made his international debut in 2011 and has since emerged as a mainstay for India in Tests. The right-handed batsman is currently the vice-captain of the Indian Test team and is set to play a crucial role in the upcoming World Test Championship final against New Zealand.

in an interview with Deep Dasgupta on ESPNCricinfo, Rahane recounted the advice he received from Rahul Dravid during the initial stages of his career:

"I remember in a Duleep Trophy final, we were playing against South Zone in 2008-09 and Rahul Dravid was playing in it in Chennai. I got runs in that game – 165 and 98. Rahul bhai called me up after the game and said, I’ve read about you a lot, you are scoring a lot of runs. As a player, it is very natural that you will start expecting an India call-up. All I would tell you is to keep on doing what you’ve been doing."

🗣️ Ajinkya Rahane: "Winning the Test Championship final is equal to winning the World Cup."#WTC21 pic.twitter.com/eOfKZA4pVg

— ICC (@ICC) March 3, 2021

Ajinkya Rahane added that he would take Dravid's advice in his stride, scoring another 1000 runs in domestic cricket next season before receiving his maiden India call-up two years later:

"You keep focussing on that and India call-up will come automatically. Don’t run after it, it will follow you. Getting that advice from someone like Rahul bhai really motivated me a lot. That inspired me a lot. He has seen a lot of ups and downs. I got another thousand runs next season and two years after that, I was selected."

Ajinkya Rahane talks about his early struggles in domestic cricket

Got my first dose of the vaccine today. I urge everyone to register and get yourself vaccinated, if you’re eligible pic.twitter.com/VH2xYcTQ1i

— Ajinkya Rahane (@ajinkyarahane88) May 8, 2021

Ajinkya Rahane averages 48.30 in first-class cricket, but it wasn't smooth sailing for him in the early stages of his domestic career. The Indian batsman revealed he received a lot of backing from then-Mumbai coach Pravin Amre, who helped him come out of his initial rough patch. He said:

"The first three or four games in my first season of Ranji Trophy did not go well. People had started to say that I should be dropped and sent back to club cricket but Pravin Amre, who was our coach at that time said that "once we have got someone into the side, we should at least give him 7-8 matches before deciding.""

Ajinkya Rahane has played 73 Tests so far, scoring 4583 runs at an average of 41.28. He will be key to India's chances on the England tour.

When the stand-in skipper starred 💯Ajinkya Rahane celebrates his birthday today. His Boxing Day Test ton was one not to be forgotten anytime soon! pic.twitter.com/wsSaN0JEqI

— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) June 5, 2021