Mumbai has always had the rich legacy of producing champion batsmen and quite a few of them have led India
Indian cricketer Ajinkya Rahane celebrates his 30th birthday on June 6. Ajinkya Rahane, in a short period of time has come a long way and is one of the most dependable batsmen for India. India will be taking on Afghanistan in a Test match at Bengaluru on June 14 and in Virat Kohli’s absence (was earlier supposed to play County cricket, later ruled out due to injury) and Ajinkya Rahane will be captaining the team for the second time.
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Ajinkya Rahane plays for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy and Mumbai over the years has produced champion cricketers with quite a few of them have gone on to captain India. Mumbai is the most successful Ranji side (41 titles) and are known to play great cricket.
Let’s look at six prominent Mumbai cricketers who have led India:
Sunil Gavaskar. Pic/AFP
1. Sunil Gavaskar: India’s original little master and the first man to score 10,000 runs in Test cricket, Sunil Gavaskar was one of the finest batsmen of his generation. Sunil Gavaskar took on the deadliest of West Indies bowlers without wearing a helmet and played on dangerous and bouncy pitches all his life. We all know Sunil Gavaskar’s pedigree as a batsman, but as a captain, Gavaskar was brilliant as well.
Sunil Gavaskar believed in leading by example as captain and was very straightforward with his players. Sunil Gavaskar led India in 47 matches, with India winning nine and losing eight.
Sachin Tendulkar. Pic/AFP
2. Sachin Tendulkar: India and the world’s most successful batsman and holder of 100 international hundreds, Sachin Tendulkar played for India for 24 years and broke numerous records. Sachin Tendulkar was a master blaster batsman and carried the expectation of billion plus people on daily basis. Sachin Tendulkar made his debut for India at the age of 16 and was earmarked as India's captain quite early in his career. But, captaincy turned out to be difficult for little master and Sachin Tendulkar couldn’t replicate his batting prowess to captaining the Indian side.
Sachin Tendulkar had a couple of unsuccessful stints as India captain in the 1990s and Indian team during that era was not strong. Sachin led India in 25 Test matches, with India winning in only four matches and losing nine. In ODI cricket, Sachin Tendulkar captained in 73 matches and India could only win 23 while losing 43.
Dilip Vengsarkar. Pic/AFP
3. Dilip Vengsarkar: Dilip Vengsarkar went on to represent India in 116 Test matches. Dilip Vengsarkar was a technically sound and a compact batsman, who relied on pacing his innings and batting according to the situation. Dilip Vengsarkar holds a rather unique record as he scored three consecutive Test hundreds at Lord’s.
Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev led India most times in the 1970s and 1980s. Dilip Vengsarkar only captained India in 10 Test matches and that period was marred with controversies. Dilip Vengsarkar was a good player, who would have made for a better captain if the scenario was a bit different.
Ravi Shastri. Pic/AFP
4. Ravi Shastri: Ravi Shastri, to the current generation of cricket followers, mostly is known as head coach of the Indian cricket team and an over-enthusiast commentator, but Shastri also played for India and played rather well! Ravi Shastri may not have been a bigger name as Kapil Dev or Sunil Gavaskar but was a cricketer who used his skill-set to the maximum.
Ravi Shastri captained India for one Test match and many commentators thought if he had been given a longer stint as captain, he would have done a good job.
Ajit Wadekar
5. Ajit Wadekar: Former Indian captain Ajit Wadekar was yet another product of Mumbai style of batting. Ajit Wadekar made his debut in 1966 against West Indies. Ajit Wadekar became the first Indian captain to win in England (1971) and West Indies (1971). Ajit Wadekar was an intuitive captain and on his watch, the next generation of Indian cricketers made their mark. For India, Wadekar scored 2,113 runs in 37 matches and also hit one century.
Ajinkya Rahane
6. Ajinkya Rahane: Last but not the least, Ajinkya Rahane is another famous Mumbai player, who will be captaining India against Afghanistan in the upcoming Test match at Bengaluru. This is not the first time that Rahane is captaining as, during last year, Rahane captained India and defeated Australia at Dharamsala in a series-deciding Test match.
Ajinkya Rahane has played under many captains, both for India and Mumbai and how he stamps his authority would be interesting to know. Ajinkya Rahane is a calm and cool individual and likes to keep things simple and basic.
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