'Jinx for us has been pretty solid' - Virat Kohli comes out in defence of Ajinkya Rahane post India's defeat

India lost the 2nd Test against New Zealand by seven wickets as well as the two-match series. It was the failure of visitors batsmen due to which they had to face a whitewash in the longer format against BlackCaps. And, Ajinkya Rahne, the deputy of Virat Kohli performed seemingly poor throughout the series due to which he was brought under the scanner of the fans and cricketing fraternity.

Moreover, Indian skipper Virat Kohli was also questioned over the poor performance of Rahane but he defended his player without any hesitation and reckoned him as one of the best players in the side.

Rahane has been a vital part of Team India in the longer format. However, this series didn’t go down well for him, who registered figures of 46 and 29 in 1st Test followed by 7 and 9 in the 2nd Test. The vice-captain of Team India was spotted struggling against the short-pitched deliveries that were bowled by the Kiwi pacers.

There is no doubt over the fact that Rahane is a reliable player in red-ball cricket but his lack of form turned out to be the main reason India suffering a whitewash. However, it looks like skipper Kohli still has a lot of faith on the right-hander.

Virat Kohli backs Ajinkya Rahane in the post-match conference

Virat Kohli, the Indian skipper came out in defence of Rahane during the post-match conference and said Rahane is a very solid player and he has always performed well for Team India whenever it’s needed. Kohli also added that the averages and numbers don’t matter to him much but the impactful performances made by a player in the team. Moreover, the Men in Blue skipper also feels that Rahane has given many of them not just one or two in the past.

“Collectively as a batting unit we did not perform. We take the hit together as a group, batting group as a team. Firstly, Jinx is one of those players who has been very solid for us in Test cricket. I don’t look at averages and numbers. It’s about impact performances. You know whether he is been able to make impact performances for the team and the answer for me is yes.”

“Whenever we have required important performance from him, more often than not he has delivered in that regard. Jinx for us has been pretty solid as far as I see it. He has put his hands upon many occasions when the team has been in trouble. There are no issues there,” Virat Kohli said as quoted by India Today.

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