Ajinkya Rahane shares the one moment from Australia that he’ll never forget

Ajinkya Rahane recently talked about the one moment from the tour Down Under that will always remain etched in his memory. The Indian vice-captain admitted the time he took over from Virat Kohli in Melbourne will be the most special for him.

Ajinkya Rahane’s leadership is being praised in all quarters after his exploits in Australia. While many have backed Rahane to become the permanent Test captain for India, Ajinkya Rahane has gone out and said his main job is to be Virat Kohli’s deputy.

In an interview with the Indian Express, the 32-year-old shared an instance from the historic series that he’ll never forget.

“(I will always remember) our team meeting in Melbourne, after the Adelaide Test match when I actually took over. It (the turnaround) started from there, the vibe. We were not sure what was going to happen in the series, but everyone got together, we were determined to do well. That moment when we got together was special.”

Ajinkya Rahane took over the captaincy from Virat Kohli in disastrous circumstances. Bundled out for 36 at Adelaide, Rahane led from the front with a fighting century, as India won, in Melbourne.

His leadership and the faith shown by Ajinkya Rahane in the side’s youngsters became the backbone of India’s second consecutive series win in Australia.

Ajinkya Rahane explains what went down after Adelaide loss

Many predicted India to crumble after Adelaide defeat.

Ajinkya Rahane found himself in the eye of the storm after the pink-ball Test. His miscommunication with Virat Kohli led to the skipper’s run-out, turning the game on its head. The team could then only muster 36 in the 2nd innings, and Ajinkya Rahane admits they didn’t know what triggered the embarrassing collapse.

“In the Adelaide match, I was there as vice-captain and player. After the loss, we were all disappointed. We didn’t know what had happened. Within an hour, the game changed completely.”

Many players have talked about how the Adelaide loss helped the team get closer in times of adversity. Sharing how he felt after India lost the game by 8 wickets, Ajinkya Rahane admitted the team quickly turned their attention to how they could come back stronger in the remaining games.

“We wanted to move on, so we told ourselves to accept the situation and see how we can make a comeback. Everyone was looking to help each other. We had a few team dinners together and team activities in our team room because we couldn’t go out. We planned to give our best as a team, as a unit, and to fight it out together. That worked out for us.”