A comeback after 15 months of being dropped from India’s Test team. Many were surprised to see Ajinkya Rahane in the World Test Championship final squad. India will play the final of the Test Championship against Australia on June 7. Rahane can also be seen in the first XI in that match. The cricketer who was cut from the board’s annual contract, why was Rahane brought back? Five reasons emerge behind this.

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Runs in domestic cricket

Getting runs in the Ranji Trophy is important to get a chance in the Test team. Rahane did that. 34-year-old Rahane scored 634 runs in 11 innings in the last Ranji for Mumbai. Rahane’s average was 57.63. He also scored two hundreds. He also played an innings of 204 runs. Rahane averages 47.12 in first-class cricket. Rahane has surpassed his own average in the last season.

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Experience playing on foreign soil

The final of the World Test Championship will be held at the Oval in England. Despite not playing for India in the last 15 months, Rahane has experience playing on foreign soil. He also played a good innings on a tough pitch. The board felt that it would be beneficial for India to have such an experienced person in the team. Before Corona, the India team had several tours to Australia, England, South Africa. From where the cricketers would get the experience of playing in that country. Rahane also went on such a trip once. Now such visits have reduced. So instead of relying on a young cricketer, the board is sending Rahane.

Shreya’s injury

Shreyas Iyer’s injury is believed to be a major reason behind Rahane’s chances. Shreyas played in the middle order in the Indian Test team. Rohit Sharma was giving Rahane a chance by sitting him. Shreyas has undergone surgery. His return to the field before the World Test Championship is almost impossible. It is believed that if Shreyas had been healthy, Rahane would not have been considered.

Rhythmless Hanuma, Suryakumara

Hanuma Bihari was also seen playing in the middle order in the Indian Test team. But Shreyas was not thought of after his injury. He was injured in Ranji. Since then he has not played any match. Suryakumar Yadav also has no runs with his bat. He played only one Test. He did not get a run in that match. Lack of consistency is seen in the IPL as well. There Rahane is getting runs for Chennai Super Kings. Which will give him confidence. Lokesh Rahul is also not getting regular runs. It was difficult for the selectors to completely trust him as a middle-order batsman. That is why Rahane returned to the team.

Rahane in IPL

Rahane has scored 209 runs in this IPL so far. He is third in the list of most runs. Average 52.25. Which is pretty good in T20 cricket. Rahane is scoring so many runs by playing cricket shots. In T20 often seen to play exceptional shots. Which was not seen in Rahane’s bat. A new Rahane is appearing for Chennai. His confidence is evident at 22 yards. The selectors therefore found no reason not to take such an experienced cricketer to the final of the World Test Championship.