New Delhi: Indian Premier League has always been a heaven for batsmen with players like Brendon McCullum, Chris Gayle and AB de Villiers hogging all the limelight.
But today an Indian batsman is outshining all these international names. He does not play big shots like Gayle, nor can he ramp the ball and show aggression like Kohli, but with his killer instincts and class on the cricket field, he is scoring like a run machine.
26 year old Indian opener Ajinkya Rahane is now the leading run scorer in the season with 430 runs in 10 matches having the strike rate of 130.69 and has scored four half centuries.
No matter who the bowler is, no matter how the wicket is, when Rahane is on the crease, expect the crowd to be on its feet.
Also known as Mr. Dependable of IPL, he likes to play long innings rather than hitting huge sixes. In the recent game against Delhi Daredevils, his knock of 91 runs off just 54 balls helped his side to post a daunting total of 189. He also showcased his fielding skills and RR won the match quite comfortably by 14 runs. The batsman, who has been in great form in international cricket for close to two years, struck 3 sixes and 9 fours in his 54-ball knock.
The reason behind this aggressive show by the Indian batsma was that he was disappointed after getting out for 16 against Mumbai Indians which motivated him for this match.
Left sleepless after he played a bad shot against Mumbai Indians, in-form Rajasthan Royals batsman Ajinkya Rahane said he was desperate to set the record straight which helped him notch up the sublime 91-run knock.
“I was really hurt when I got out (for 16 to R Vinay Kumar) in the last game. I could not sleep that night and was all the time thinking about my shot and about the loss (by 7 wickets). I just wanted to make it count. I knew I was batting really well. Once I was in after 6-7 overs, I was planning to bat for 20 overs,” said Rahane.
Speaking to India TV, former Indian cricketer Yashpal Sharma said, “Establishing yourself in all the three formats of the game is not easy for many cricketers. The selectors and captain will be forced to think on his name for the ICC World T20 in 2016. ”
Comparing him to Rahul Dravid, he said, “India need a batsman with a technique like Dravid who can stay there like a wall to rescue the innings.”
This really takes into the account the fact that irrespective of the format, Rahane always takes his game seriously. Interestingly, the shortest format of the game also called the batsman's game, Rahane has played the most number of 109 dot balls in this season.
The record of 134 singles is also under his name while he has also scored 35 doubles.
Rahane is the leading run scorer and currently the holder of Orange Cap. Twenty 20 cricket is mostly taken as entertainment by many batsmen but Rahane plays it seriously.
The cash-rich Indian league which is more like a ‘Masala League', and where entertainment is more than the cricket, Rahane has outshone the big names and has helped his franchisee reach to the top of the points table.
