Ajinkya Rahane with Andre Russell in IPL 2025 | PC- AFP
Out of nowhere, on an ordinary Thursday morning, Indian star batter and former KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane dropped the curtain on his illustrious career from all forms of Indian cricket.
The Mumbaikar had a professional career of nearly 20 years, as he remained the flag-bearer of calmness and gentlemanhood in a generation where Indians were known for showing aggression straight out.
Rahane had some remarkable contributions as a cricketer to Indian cricket, but in this article, we will discuss five major controversies related to Ajinkya Rahane, as he recently hung up his boots.
When Ajinkya Rahane called out Eden’s curator
Ajinkya Rahane was named KKR’s captain in IPL 2025, as he led them in two successive seasons. During his first season at the helm, the Mumbaikar faced some trouble adjusting with his players, coaches and even the home curator.
After a home fixture vs LSG, the KKR skipper openly criticised Eden Gardens’ curator, Sujan Mukherjee, who, according to Rahane, didn’t give them the the conditions they asked for. In that match, a total of 470 runs were scored, while Kolkata fell just short of the target.
While reigniting the debate, Rahane had said that KKR were neutralised as spinners didn’t get enough assistance even on their home track.
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Ajinkya Rahane shut strike rate debate
In IPL 2026, Ajinkya Rahane scored 335 runs at a strike rate of 135.08. He was often criticised for having a substandard strike rate and mocked for not showing enough intent. The KKR captain lost them more matches than they won because of his batting.
Despite that, he backed himself amid the low strike-rate talk in the the media. He openly called people out for having an “agenda” against him and said they are “jealous” of him.
"My strike rate... I have the best strike rate so far from 2023. People who are talking are probably not watching the game or have a certain agenda against me. They don't like me playing. They don't like to watch me play. The amount of success I've got, I guess they're jealous about that,” Rahane had said during IPL 2026.
When Ajinkya Rahane punished Yashasvi Jaiswal
Back in 2022, Ajinkya Rahane had to intervene in a verbal feud between his West Zone team member, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and South Zone’s Ravi Teja in the Duleep Trophy final.
Although very little is known about the incident, the West Zone captain Rahane punished an upcoming Jaiswal, who apparently crossed his boundaries while sledging the opposition batter.
After the game, Rahane had stated, “I believe in always respecting your opponents, umpires and match officials. So you have to handle certain incidents in a certain manner."
However, instances like that talk a lot about Ajinkya Rahane’s character, not just a cricketer, but a person.
Fighting racism
During the SCG Test during the famous BGT 2020/21 series in Australia, where Ajinkya Rahane served as the stand-in captain, two Indian pacers, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, faced racial slurs being fired at them by some of the drunk crowd.
After getting bullied for a couple of overs, the two pacers, alongside skipper Rahane, took the matter to the on-field umpires. Initially, the officials asked the Indians to continue playing, but the stand-in captain stood like a rock.
Rahane not only ensured that the umpires took due action, but, because of his adamant nature, the problematic elements were removed from the stadium. Later, Ravichandran Ashwin and Hanuma Vihari had said that the Indian side faced racism during the previous Test matches as well.
When Ajinkya Rahane talked about credit stealing
Under Ajinkya Rahane’s captaincy, Team India pulled off one of the most remarkable Test series victories on foreign soil, especially after getting tumbled for 36 all-out in the first match with Virat Kohli missing the remainder of the series.
The seasoned batter walked the talk in that series, slamming an extraordinary century in the Boxing Day Test. He was at his astute best as a captain in that series.
However, after the series, Rahane infamously stated that he didn’t get due credit for India’s historic triumph Down Under, after the then head coach Ravi Shastri called it Kohli’s team.
"I know what I've done there. I don't need to tell anyone. That's not my nature to go and take credit. Yes, there were some things that I took the decisions on the field or in the dressing room but someone else took the credit for it," Rahane had said on Backstage With Boria.
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