Ajinkya Rahane has reckoned that former India skipper Rahul Dravid has played a massive role in India’s memorable series win in the recently held Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Youngsters like Shubman Gill, Washington Sundar, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur and T Natarajan played crucial roles in defeating the hosts at their fortress – The Gabba by three wickets and helped India win the Border-Gavaskar 2-1.
Several cricket pundits have also earlier credited Dravid, believing that the former India skipper’s association with the U-19 team, India A and with the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru has nurtured the youngsters, who played crucial roles in the series.
In an interview with the Indian Express, Rahane said: “Rahul bhai plays a very big role. He was with the Under-19 team, then he was with India A, and now he is with the National Cricket Academy. (The system) has helped Mohammed Siraj, Saini… They have been on their toes and they did so well. Shubman Gill also, Mayank Agarwal… Before joining international cricket, he did so many tours with India A, got runs at the domestic level. So, I think Rahul bhai’s role was massive.”
“We used to go to NCA before lockdown… and if a guy like Rahul Dravid is there, you learn something every day… We talk over the phone, exchange messages. He messaged me after the Melbourne match and immediately after the Brisbane match, saying how proud he was of the team,” he added.
Dravid had however, refused to take any credit for the success.