Ajinkya Rahane, a veteran batter, remembers the day of legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar’s retirement as the day he received one of the best pieces of advice of his life from the Master Blaster. In the book ‘Sachin@50’, Rahane recalls how Tendulkar called him and motivated him to continue putting in the hard yards and not worry about the results. This was a huge morale booster for Rahane, who wasn’t getting regular game time for India and potentially had to wait longer for his opportunity due to Rohit Sharma’s success. Despite having just retired, Tendulkar ensured that Rahane felt good about his game. He shared:
“We had decided to give Paaji (Sachin Tendulkar) some space, and I was astonished when he called me over. Paaji had seen me from very close and had this to say. ‘I have known you for years and have seen how much you love the game. You have been the perfect devotee and have served cricket with all the dedication and commitment over the last few years.
“You might feel hard done by what has happened so far in your career, but you should continue to be the way you are. You will get your chance, and you should grab it with both hands once you do. For the moment, you may feel it is a cruel game, but I am certain the game will take care of you in the future if you continue to serve it the way you have always done.’”
“I was stunned. For him to call me on a day like this and spend 15 minutes speaking to me was unthinkable. If I was ever in need of motivation, I had it in front of me. I can’t describe in words what that conversation meant to me.” He further added.
Rahane recalls how Sachin helped him in his MCG hundred in 2020
Many consider Ajinkya Rahane’s century against Australia at the MCG in the Boxing Day Test of the 2020-21 Border-Gavaskar Trophy his greatest Test knock so far. India had lost the first Test at Adelaide, where they were bowled out for just 36 runs in the second innings. After this loss, Virat Kohli headed home for the birth of his child, and Rahane was asked to lead the side.
Rahane scored a fantastic hundred in the MCG Test and helped India make one of the greatest comebacks by winning the series 2-1 with another triumph at the Gabba. The 34-year-old has revealed that Sachin Tendulkar’s hundred against Australia in the MCG Test in 1999 inspired him to do well. He said:
“As skipper, I had to lead from the front. For a young team to take heart, the captain had to score. And that’s when my thoughts went back to Paaji. He scored a hundred at the MCG in 1999, and I still rate it as one of his best knocks. I remember seeing the innings five or six times before walking out, and it helped me immensely.
“I went on to score a hundred at the MCG in a Boxing Day Test, and more importantly, we won the Test match and leveled the series. After that, we went on to win the series after a spectacular effort in Brisbane, and it will forever rank as the best series win of my career. In a significant way, Paaji was with me in this victory.”
In the ongoing IPL 2023, Rahane is enjoying a comeback with the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). He has scored 209 runs in five matches with an average of 52.25 and a strike rate of 199.04, making him the third-highest scorer in the team.