What is Ajinkya Rahane’s record against Australia in Tests?

Ajinkya Rahane is making a comeback into the Indian Test set-up after being dropped for a while over his poor form. He was recalled to India’s World Test Championship final team and has so far, made that look a justified decision.

Rahane has been one of the most important players in India’s Test team over the last decade. He was also the vice-captain of the Indian Test Team for several years.

And he showed the world why in the ongoing World Test Championship (WTC) Final 2023 against Australia. After the Aussies put up a daunting score of 469, India’s batting collapsed but for Rahane and Jadeja who have somehow pushed the score past 150 on Day 2. However, Jadeja fell just before stumps and India’s hopes are pinned on Rahane. 

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Let’s take a look at his Test record against Australia. Will he pull another rabbit out of the hat?

How has Rahane batted against Australia in Tests?

Rahane has a decent record while facing Australia. Rahane made his Test debut against Australia in 2013. He was not convincing in his first appearance, scoring only eight runs across two innings. 

But the 2014 Border-Gavaskar Trophy was a memorable one for Jinks. He proved his mettle as a batsman in the away series. Playing four tests, he scored 399 runs in eight innings. It included two half-centuries and one century. His maiden duck, half-century, and century all came in this tour. 

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Since then, Rahane has scored three half-centuries and one more century against Australia. His away record has been better than his record on home soil. He has scored four half-centuries and two centuries in Australia. His only half-century (52) against Australia in India came in Bengaluru in 2017.

What is Rahane’s Captaincy record against Australia in Tests? 

Rahane’s first test match as India’s Test captain was in the absence of Virat Kohli in 2017 against Australia. Kohli failed to recover from a shoulder injury and was declared unfit for the series decider. In the tournament decider at Dharamsala, Rahane took the baton into his own hands. India won the four-match series 2-1. It is worth noting that Rahane has not lost a single game in his career as a captain. 

In the 2020-21 India’s tour of Australia, Rahane was selected as captain after the first test match at Adelaide. Virat Kohli had left on account of paternity leave and India were 1-0 down in the four-match series. Under Rahane’s inspired captaincy, India came back from behind to win the series 2-1, with Rishabh Pant playing a blinder on Day 5 at Brisbane in what is one of India’s most famous Test wins.

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