File photo of Virat Kohli with Ajinkya Rahane.
With India suffering a heavy defeat against England in the first Test in Chennai on Tuesday, Ajinkya Rahane has come under criticism for failing to perform with the bat recently. The batsman gained much appreciation for leading the team to success in Australia as a makeshift captain but managing just a solitary run over two innings in Chennai has not impressed many.
Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar was first one to be vocal about the 32-year-old Mumbaikar's lack of form since that epic Melbourne Test, where Rahane scored a match-winning century, and pointed out that he hasn't scored big in the last seven innings he batted in.
However, Indian skipper Virat Kohli, who scored 72 runs for losing cause on the day, came in defence of his deputy, saying he isn't out of form while reminding again that he scored that Melbourne century not too long ago.
“Ajinkya Rahane has stood up and scored when it mattered the most, and let's not forget the 100 at Melbourne. There are no issues, everyone is playing well," Kohli said after the match.
