India vice-captain, Ajinkya Rahane has been in great form in 2019 so far. He looks a reformed batsman after a lean two years, during which he failed to score a century - a streak he broke with his 102 against West Indies earlier this year.
To give you context, Rahane has scored 505 runs in just 9 innings at an average of 72.14 - his best in any year of his Test career since his debut in 2013. He has the third-highest average of batsmen scoring at least 500 runs in 2019. Only Quinton de Kock and Steve Smith are ahead of him.
Rahane has been one of the cornerstones for India in their World Test Championship sojourn, where they lead the table by a huge 180 points. However, the Bangladesh series provides a stern test on one aspect he has struggled against - spin.
The Mumbaikar likes the ball coming on to bat. He is at his best when he can use the pace to play the ball late and guide it into gaps expertly. This is not to say he is not adept at playing spin, but the numbers do not paint a very rosy picture.
Read | India look to consolidate top Test spot against Bangladesh
Rahane has been dismissed 92 times across his Test career, and 46 of those have come against spinners. Since 2017, he has given his wicket away to spinners 22 times, which is the third-highest across the world in that period. Only Sri Lanka’s Niroshan Dickwella and Kusal Mendis have been dismissed more times by spinners in that period.
|
Most dismissals to Spinners since 2017 in Tests |
|
|
Niroshan Dickwella |
25 |
|
Kusal Mendis |
24 |
|
Ajinkya Rahane |
22 |
|
Dilruwan Perera |
22 |
|
Kraigg Brathwaite |
21 |
In home Tests, Rahane has been dismissed by spinners 26 times, the highest for any Indian batsman since 2013. His average against spin (29.50) also dips sharply when compared to those against pacers (40.10).
Considering his stats, Rahane will face a real test against Bangladesh’s spin-heavy attack which includes the likes of Taijul Islam, Mehedy Hasan and Nayeem Hasan, with the additional options of Mosaddek Hossain and Mahmudullah.
However, two things hold him in good stead going into the first Test against Bangladesh. India last played against Bangladesh in a Test in 2017, and Rahane scored 82 which was his second-highest score in a patchy 2017.
The second thing is the venue. Indore has hosted only one Test in the past when India played New Zealand in 2016. Rahane shone with the bat, making his highest Test score of 188, and was in with a chance of making a maiden Test double-hundred.
The venue and Rahane’s current form suggest that India’s vice-captain can have another good series this year but it remains to be seen how well he handles the Bangladeshi spinners.
Featured image courtesy: AFP/ Money Sharma
