Batting great Sunil Gavaskar reckons the presence of experienced Ajinkya Rahane would have made a difference to India’s total in the first Test in Centurion. Gavaskar remarked while reacting to India’s shocking batting collapse on Day 1 of the Boxing Day Test against South Africa.

South African pacer Kagiso Rabada picked up a 5-wicket haul to trigger India’s collapse but KL Rahul stood firm, scoring an unbeaten 70. Play was stopped prematurely due to poor visibility and showers, with India at 208 for 8, managing to hold off a fatiguing home attack.

. | SA vs IND, 1st Test Day 1 Scorecard |

Gavaskar mentioned during a broadcast that India might have had a different score in the Centurion Test if they had selected Rahane to play. He recalled an instance from the 2018/19 series in Johannesburg when Rahane, excluded from the initial games, showcased his batting prowess by scoring a resilient 48 runs on a challenging pitch. His contribution was instrumental in India clinching a 63-run victory in the final match of that series.

“People have been talking about the pitch in the Johannesburg Test five years back and I was there. Yeah, it wasn’t the easiest of pitches to bat on the odd ball was climbing up. And Ajinkya Rahane, who had not been picked for the first two Test matches, was picked for that game and he showed what the Indian team had missed because earlier on in the first couple of Test matches India did not lose by big margins. So maybe somebody with Rahane’s experience overseas… because Rahane overseas has been such a fine, fine player and maybe if he had been there today the story could have been completely different,” Gavaskar said on commentary on Star Sports.

Rahane was dropped alongside Cheteshwar Pujara, signalling India’s shift away from the senior batters in early 2022. While Pujara reclaimed his spot with an impressive County cricket stint, Rahane spent a year out of the limelight. His return came in 2023, marking a stunning comeback for the Chennai Super Kings in the IPL. Subsequently, due to Shreyas Iyer’s injury, Rahane rejoined the Test side, contributing a resilient fifty in the WTC final despite the team’s loss. He was then appointed vice-captain for the West Indies tour, only to find himself dropped again for the South Africa series.