Virat Kohli snubs Ajinkya Rahane criticism, calls him India's 'most important Test batter'

India's vice-captain in Tests, Ajinkya Rahane has been subjected to some fierce criticism after his dismal performances with the willow in the last few matches. The right-handed batsman was severely lambasted after he failed to perform in the first Test against England in Chennai that India lost by a massive 227-run margin. Much was expected from Rahane after India's success in Australia but the batsman failed to deliver once again. 

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Virat Kohli defends Ajinkya Rahane's poor form, calls him India's 'most important' Test batsman 

The Mumbai-based batsman has been in abysmal form since India's Test assignment in Australia. Besides scoring a sensational century in the second Test against Australia in Melbourne, Rahane hasn't played a single innings of substance. Rahane's poor run of form continued even in the India vs England 1st Test as he managed scores of 1 and 0 in the first and second innings respectively. 

Rahane had to face a lot of flak after he couldn't stand up for the team when it was required the most. Several reactions poured in as fans slammed the cricketer and also pointed out his inconsistency with the bat. A certain section of fans also demanded Rahane's exclusion from the side. However, Indian captain Virat Kohli defended Rahane's poor form during the post-match press conference.

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While speaking to media after the first Test, Kohli was asked about Rahane's place in the side. The Indian captain sternly replied that he has repeated time and again that along with Cheteshwar Pujara, Rahane is the team's most important Test batsman and he’s going to continue to be so. He questioned the media and public for unnecessarily trying to hype Rahane's failures rather than successes.

Kohli further backed Rahane by saying that the team believes in his abilities and they have done it for a long time. Saying that Rahane is an impact player, Kohli pointed out the MCG Test against Australia and reiterated how he stood up and scored a hundred there when the team needed it the most.

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Speaking about his poor outings in the first Test, Kohli reckoned it’s just one Test, two innings and asked the media to ignore his second innings dismissal. Talking about Rahane's first innings, Kohli said that batsman wanted to score a boundary but a brilliant catch from Joe Root resulted in his dismissal. The Indian skipper further said that if that ball had gone to the boundary and Rahane had scored runs, they would perhaps not have been having this conversation at all. In the end, Kohli reassured that there are absolutely no issues and everyone is playing really well.

India vs England 2021: Here's Virat Kohli's post-match press conference

Ajinkya Rahane stats

The Rahane stats in Test cricket make for a decent reading. The right-hander has represented India in 70 Tests where he has amassed 4472 runs at an average of 41.79. Rahane has scored 12 centuries and 22 fifties in Test cricket. The Mumbai-based cricketer has been immensely successful on overseas tours, however, he hasn't been able to replicate the same form and class at home on a regular basis. 

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SOURCE: ICC TWITTER