WTC Final: Ajinkya Rahane put his head down, played domestic cricket and got what he deserved – MSK Prasad

Praising Rahane, who has played 82 Tests for India and led India to their second-consecutive series win in Australia, Prasad pointed out that regardless of his stature he went back to domestic credit and paved his way back in the national squad.

“He has always been a fantastic cricketer for us. How would we have won the Test series in Australia without him? The kind of hundred that he got in Melbourne, the kind of hundred he got in Lord’s. Everywhere around the world, he has got runs.

“Unfortunately, he has not got a lot of runs in India lately. It’s a rare thing, many Indian batters don’t do well overseas. It’s the other-way around for him,’ Prasad told IndiaToday.in in an interview.

“I am very happy for him. I am one of the biggest fans of his attitude. I have never seen any change in his attitude, despite the ups and downs he has had.

He works really hard, you can see, he played all the games in domestic cricket, he put his head down and worked his way back. Naturally, nature itself has given him what he deserved,” Prasad said about Rahane who last played a Test match for India in January 2022.

Further, Prasad also backed the decision of the BCCI selectors for naming Rahane in the squad in the absence of middle-order batter Shreyas Iyer who has been ruled out due to a back injury. Suryakumar Yadav was an option but he did not impress in his debut Test against Australia this year.

“It’s a fair team, it’s the right call to name Ajinkya with so much of uncertainty in the middle-order, I think they (selectors) were absolutely right,” Prasad said.

“I am very, very happy for him. He has always been a wonderful performer for India in the away series. And I think he fits the bill perfectly. Full credit to the selectors for bringing him back.

“Basically, his attitude is like a monk’s. He is never disturbed when he is not selected. He is not over-excited when he is selected. He is that kind of a guy. His mood doesn’t swing up and down, just like that. He is a very mature person,” he added.

“Unfortunately, because of a dip in his form, he had to sit out,” he added.

The WTC final against Australia will be played from June 7 at The Oval in London.