"You can't score runs sitting at home"- Ajinkya Rahane on the perils of the absence of domestic cricket

Team India batter Ajinkya Rahane feels it is difficult for a one-format player to get into a rhythm and maintain form without domestic cricket. The 33-year-old notes that the domestic competition's absence has hampered the form of many such players.

Rahane believes that being devoid of cricket during the large gaps between international Test matches was the root cause of his poor form. With the return of red-ball domestic cricket in India, he has been added to the Mumbai Ranji trophy squad led by Prithvi Shaw.

He notes that confidence only comes with scoring runs in matches. Speaking on Backstage with Boria, he said:

"Sometimes, the reality is, when you play only one format and especially in the last 2-3 years where there is no Ranji cricket and no other domestic games. And I think that needs to be taken into account because you can't score runs sitting at home. No matter how much you practice or have ner sessions, the confidence will not be gained with that. Confidence comes with game time and scoring runs in matches."

The Ranji Trophy was not conducted in the previous year due to the COVID-19 threat. After postponing initially, the BCCI announced a revised schedule for the competition in 2022, which will be played in two phases.

Rahane also brought up his ODI stint with the national team and implied that his form in Test cricket waned after he was dropped from the white ball team. He continued:

"Before that, I was playing ODI cricket continuously for Team India and I was doing really well. Suddenly, I got dropped, I don't want to go into that, I don't want to go into my past but the reality is I was playing well in 2014,15, 16, and 17. ODI and Test cricket both were going really well. After that I hardly got game time, there was a huge gap between Test matches,"

The former vice-captain was an integral part of the ODI setup at one time due to his prowess at the top as well as the middle order. He last played in the format for India on their 2018 tour of South Africa.

"I'm not running away from it" - Ajinkya Rahane on his poor patch of form

Rahane has struggled for runs over the last two years. Barring a century in Australia and isolated fifties in England and South Africa, Rahane has been far from his best. Addressing his poor form, he said:

"See, I accept that I'm going through a rough patch and this is a patch that all cricketers go through and I accept that. I'm not hiding behind it, I'm not running away from it. I know what I have to do to take my game forward."

With the likes of Shreyas Iyer and Hanuma Vihari making their case for the middle order, the veteran has a lifeline in the form of the Ranji Trophy to make it to the squad for the Sri Lanka series.