Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh has backed senior batsman Ajinkya Rahane for another chance for the third Test against South Africa in Cape Town. Rahane has been going through a rough patch with the bat and in the Johannesburg Test, the 33-year-old was dismissed for a duck in the first innings while he scored a crucial 58 off 78 balls. However, he faced a lot of scrutiny for not converting the fifty into a big score.
The veteran off-spinner feels that Rahane should not lose his place when skipper Virat Kohli returns for the final Test.
“The good thing that happened in the Johannesburg Test was that runs came from Ajinkya Rahane’s bat in the second innings. I hope Ajinkya Rahane is given another chance in Cape Town. It should not happen that Virat Kohli comes in and Ajinkya Rahane is made to sit outside.
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Harbhajan spoke about Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara’s crucial fifties in the Cape Town Test as he said both had swords hanging around their necks.
“I want Rahane to score runs, to convert fifty into century, so that his confidence is better for the upcoming series. Ajinkya Rahane and Pujara have swords hanging around their necks. So it was good that both of them scored runs and batted responsibly.”
The 41-year-old heaped praise on Pujara and Rahane after crossing in the second Test, while he wants both of them to score big.
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“They are both formidable players, needless to mention. He has been in the Indian team for a long time and has found a permanent place for himself, although Ajinkya did not have a good last season, he did not score big runs. I hope those fifties would have been converted into hundreds but it is good to see these two gaining their confidence. I know there is a lot of pressure when a player is not in form but I think you guys have done a commendable job.”
Both of them are under a lot of pressure to retain their place in the Test team as youngsters like Shreyas Iyer and Hanuma Vihari have played some good innings in the longest format so far.
Team India players have reached Cape Town and started training for the final test starting from January 11.
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