Experienced India middle-order batter Ajinkya Rahane, making his comeback into the Team for the crunch ICC World Test Championship final, refused to undergo scans despite sustaining a finger injury to preserve his mental health and decided to focus on his batting on Day 3 of India's summit clash against Australia on Friday. The revealation was made by his wife Radhika in a hearltfelt social media post she shared on Saturday.
"Despite your swollen finger, you refused a scan to protect your mindset and focused on batting, displaying incredible selflessness and determination. With unwavering resilience and commitment, you took your place at the crease, inspiring us all. I’m forever proud of your unwavering team spirit, my resilient partner. Love you endlessly!" she wrote on Instagram along with a few pictures from the batter's innings.
It is pertinent to note that Rahane had received a blow to his index finger on Day 2 of the Test match when a Pat Cummins delivery hit him on his dominant hand. The 35-year-old felt pain after the incident and had to call for medical attention. However, he went on to score a memorable 89, playing a Test match after 18 months in an innings where none of the top-order batters failed to make a significant impact. He might have failed to get a hundred but he top-scored for India as the Men in Blue managed to amass 296 in response to Australia's 469.
In the second innings, Australia have extended their lead to 374 and still have 4 wickets in hand at Lunch on Day 4. While an Australia win and a draw seem to be the most likely results of the match from here, for an India win, batters including the likes of Rahane will have to bat out of their skins and at a brisk rate to achieve what seems to quite some distance away at this point in the match.