"You all know that" - Veteran Indian batter opens up on being dropped from Indian team after WTC Final heroics 

Veteran batter Ajinkya Rahane recalled how he was not considered for the Indian Test team for long despite performing well in the 2023 World Test Championship (WTC) Final against Australia. The right-handed batter had scored 89 and 46 in the first and the second innings, respectively, in the 209-run defeat at The Oval.

Rahane was initially dropped from the side after the 2021-22 tour of South Africa. He was not considered for the home series against Sri Lanka or the tour of Bangladesh in 2022.

Injuries to Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul had left the team short of candidates in the middle order ahead of the WTC Final. Ajinkya Rahane, who had a stunning 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign with the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the middle order, was recalled as a result.

Rahane played only a couple more Test matches after his WTC Final heroics. He scored only 11 runs in two innings during the tour of the Caribbean in July 2023, and has not been recalled since then.

"I had played very well in the WTC Final, and then I was out of the team. Anyways, selection and non-selection are in the hands of the selectors, but I thought I did well in the WTC Final, you all know that," Rahane said in a post-match press conference after Mumbai's Ranji Trophy quarter-final win over Haryana.

Team India have preferred dynamic and modern options like Shreyas Iyer and Sarfaraz Khan in the middle order amid the transition. KL Rahul being deployed in the middle-order on select occasions has also not helped Rahane's case in his comeback ambitions.

"Whatever responsibility will be given to me, I will be ready for it" - Indian batter Ajinkya Rahane on being linked with KKR captaincy role

Rahane's current form extends to the shortest format of the game too. He was adjudged player of the tournament in Mumbai's victorious Syed Mushtaq Ali campaign in late 2024. The veteran scored 469 runs in eight innings at an average of 58.62.

The recent surge of form comes across as a great sign for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), who also happen to be in search of a new captain after parting ways with Shreyas Iyer ahead of the auctions.

Rahane stated that he is open to the responsibility if the franchise decide to appoint him as captain.

"I have seen all kinds of situations, and I am familiar with all types of situations too. So, I know how to handle those. Whatever responsibility will be given to me, I will be ready for it," Rahane added

Apart from Rahane, the likes of Venkatesh Iyer, Sunil Narine, and Rinku Singh are also in the fray to be the next KKR captain.