Vice-captaincy will not affect my batting, says Ajinkya Rahane

Contrary to suggestions that the responsibility of vice-captaincy could hamper his batting, Test skipper Virat Kohli's deputy for India's upcoming tour of the West Indies, Ajinkya Rahane said that he is looking forward to the four-Tests series with much confidence.

"As a vice-captain, there will be responsibilities and I like to take responsibilities. When I toured Zimbabwe as a captain, I learned a lot from my team-mates, it was a good experience and we had won in Zimbabwe,” Rahane said, as reported by the Times of India, after being handed the CEAT Special Performance award on Monday. “I will learn new things from this team and it will be important how I go ahead step by step.”

While it is popularly believed that the additional burden of responsibility could weigh down one’s individual performances, Rahane is of the opinion that the role will, in fact, improve his play.

"All these things are in the mind and how you think about such things is important and I don't think that captaincy and vice-captaincy make any difference on batting. As a captain or a vice-captain, I can give my more than my best because there is responsibility. When you represent the country, your mindset is completely different. This will help to improve my performance," Rahane said.

The 27-year-old said that he was unsure as to what kind of pitches to expect in the Carribean as there has been a drastic change over the years whenever he has toured the West Indies.

"I had toured the West Indies as part of India A around 3-4 years back. At that time, the wickets were little slow. I have heard there is good bounce and pace in Barbados & Jamaica. At the same time, I feel the wickets may be spin-friendly,” he said.

“We will get the idea of the wickets once we go there. But it is an exciting tour in the West Indies. We are going with a young Test team. We have done well recently and so we are looking forward to the tour," he added.

Rahane revealed that he will be seeking the advice of Indian batting legends Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar before embarking on the tour.

"Whenever they (Sachin Tendulkar and Sunil Gavaskar) are available, I try and converse with them. Before going to West Indies, if I can meet them, I will ask them about their experience, conditions and what kind of cricket is played there. If they are available, I will like to speak to them," he said.