Rising Pune Supergiant’s plan was to score a boundary in every over in their chase of Mumbai Indian’s 185-run target in their Indian Premier League opener on Thursday, said Ajinkya Rahane.
The RPS opener, who is not particularly known for clearing the boundary with ease, set the tone for the chase with a blazing 34-ball 60, which was peppered with six fours and three sixes. After that, it was yet another Steve Smith show in Pune. The Australian smashed two sixes off Kieron Pollard with his side needing 10 from three balls to remain unbeaten on 84 from just 54.
Rahane revealed that he wanted to cash in on his good start, especially after fellow opener Mayank Agarwal departed early. “When you are chasing a total of 180-190, you need to carry on the momentum from the first six or seven overs,” he said. “I knew that I was striking the ball really well. For me, it was important to continue the momentum as Smith was new to the crease.”
Shedding more light on his approach when the field restrictions were on, the 28-year-old stated that there was no plan to take undue risks, despite the daunting asking rate. “Mayank [Agarwal] and I had a plan of playing positive cricket. I played normal cricket and didn’t take any risks,” he said, while also appreciating Mumbai Indians all-rounder Hardik Pandya’s extraordinary 30-run onslaught against Ashok Dinda.
The Mumbai-based batsman was also quick to brush aside any comparisons between former RPS captain MS Dhoni and current leader Smith. He also observed that the No 1-ranked Test batsman feeds off on the India veteran’s advice. “We should not compare [Smith and Dhoni]. It is too early for me to comment on Smith’s captaincy but both are world-class captains and I have observed that Smith takes advice from Dhoni,” Rahane said.
