“There is a steely nerve in Ajinkya Rahane” - Bharat Arun

Team India bowling coach Bharat Arun has described Ajinkya Rahane as someone with a “steely nerve” even though he appears calm and composed from the outside.

Ajinkya Rahane is being hailed as a hero after leading India to victory in the Test series in Australia. Most critics had written the visitors off after they embarrassingly lost the first Test. Inspite of Team India losing several key players over the course of the series, they still managed to bounce back and win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy by a 2-1 margin

In a YouTube chat with Ravichandran Ashwin, Arun deciphered why Ajinkya Rahane’s captaincy worked Down Under. He explained:

“When it comes to Ajinkya (Rahane), he is a calm person. Rahane might look calm from the outside but there is a steely nerve in him.”

He further added that Ajinkya Rahane backs his players unconditionally. Shedding further light on the same, Arun said:

“He backs players and looks calm and even if a bowler goes wrong, he might not be scared of the captain. He knows that he will be backed.”

Ajinkya Rahane took over the captaincy from Virat Kohli after the latter headed back to India, following India’s eight-wicket loss at Adelaide. Asked about the difference in Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane’s leadership styles, Arun replied:

“With Virat Kohli, if you bowl two bad balls, it might look like he will get angry, but that’s just his energy. Ajinkya brings the calmness, of course, even if he buys-in the plan, he makes sure he executes it to the T.”

Ajinkya Rahane back as vice-captain for England series

Ajinkya Rahane

With Virat Kohli returning to the team for the home Test series against England, Ajinkya Rahane will silently slip back into his role as vice-captain. The 32-year-old recently shunned calls to replace Kohli as captain of the Indian Test team.

Speaking to the media before heading to Chennai for the England Tests, Ajinkya Rahane said:

"Nothing changes. Virat was and will always be the captain of the Test team, and I am his deputy. When he was absent it was my duty to lead the side and my responsibility to give my best for Team India's success.”

As we draw curtains on our historic triumph and start our preparations for the home series, here’s Captain @ajinkyarahane88‘s address to #TeamIndia from the Gabba dressing room. Full 🎥https://t.co/Sh2tkR5c7j pic.twitter.com/l7wr6UXSxq

— BCCI (@BCCI) January 23, 2021

India face England in the first of the four Tests in Chennai, starting February 5.