AUS v IND 2020-21: ‘Proud moment for me to captain India’, says Ajinkya Rahane on the eve of 2nd Test

Rahane will lead India in the remaining three Tests of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

With India’s regular skipper Virat Kohli returning home for the birth of his first child, Ajinkya Rahane will now have to take the onus of inspiring the visitors to script a turnaround in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy Down Under.

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Having suffered a humiliating 8-wicket defeat at Adelaide, Team India are currently trailing 1-0 in the four-Test series.  

On the eve of the second Test, stand-in skipper Rahane said it is a proud moment for him to captain the country and added that the job will be a mix of opportunities and responsibilities.

"It's a proud moment for me to captain India and obviously it's a great opportunity and responsibility as well. I don't want to take any pressure and I want to back my team," Rahane said in a virtual press conference on the eve of the Boxing Day Test.

"As a team, we need to do well so focus is not on me, it's on the team and how we need to well in Australia we are focusing on that," he added.

Rahane, who has led India to Test victories against Australia and Afghanistan in the past, also advised his troops to focus on themselves without paying much attention to the hosts.

"Australians are very good at playing mind games and then let them do that. We are just focusing on ourselves, we will back ourselves as a team as a unit," he remarked.

Having captained India in two Tests, Rahane has learned to back his instinct.

"From the 2017 Dharamsala Test I learned that backing your instinct, backing your methods, and staying true to your style (is the right approach)," he said.

Meanwhile, Team India have made as many as four changes in their playing XI for the Boxing Day Test, with two of them being forced.

While Ravindra Jadeja comes in for Kohli, Mohammed Siraj replaces the injured pacer Mohammad Shami in the playing XI. Moreover, Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant replace Prithvi Shaw and Wriddhiman Saha in the team respectively.

Team India’s playing XI for the second Test:

Ajinkya Rahane (c), Mayank Agarwal, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Umesh Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj

(Inputs from ANI)