Ajinkya Rahane exclusive interview: Life is all about serving

The Indian cricket teams vicecaptain Ajinkya Rahane kicked off the first edition of Meet Your Icon mdash middays brand new dialogue series between sports stars and a select group of budding players Rahane currently gearing up for the muchawaited fivematch Test series against England beginning on August 1 in volatile English conditions made a pit stop at the midday office in Bandra east stones throw away from the Mumbai Cricket Associations BKC nets where he practices regularlyKnown as a man of few words Rahane this time took a select live audience by storm opening up on his initial struggle in cricket how his father was an inspiration and his success mantra in life mdash enjoy the game and the rest will follow The 40minute chat kept everyone hooked and it was a nobrainer to say that the first edition of Meet Your Icon was a huge hitAjinkya Rahane in conversation with middays Noel DSouza during the first edition of Meet Your Icon at this newspapers office in BandraEdited excerpts from the conversationBarring your presence on the field very few have heard your voice go beyond 0001 decibel Is that the person you are calm and composedFrankly I do not like to waste my energy off the field I am really cool and calm I learnt karate I am a black belt in judo For me it was all about showing my intent and action on the field rather than off it I know how to use my energy in crunch or challenging situations and I always believe that if I staycalm I can perform and concentrate betterWere you the same when you were youngerYes I was a bit shy I am still shy laughs but karate and cricket taught me that it is important that I keep learning each and every day be it in my practice sessions or during tournaments In cricket you learn from practice and matches so staying cool off the field helps me on it I ensure I give my best while batting and fielding I think that my thought process actually gets better while doing thisAjinkya RahaneSo you were never this brash violent kid that would once in a way unleash himselfNeverThen how do you ventDefinitely as a human being you get frustrated and angry but I like to show my aggression with my batting In that way I can perform and think much better Suppose something happens and you get angry and then in that anger you do something wrong its a waste of time and energy Then you realise I have committed a mistake So when you get angry or frustrated just stay calm listen to music read a book or something Its a matter of five minutes and your anger goes away I am really lucky that I picked up this technique during my younger days when I was learning karate My father always said I need to use my energy inthe right directionWas cricket always your passion Tell us about your tryst with the gameI started playing cricket in Dombivli I used to play with a tennis ball along with my building mates There were many complaints about broken windowpanes One day my father and a neighbour discussed my technique In fact my neighbour told my father that my technique looked really good and I should enrol in an academy My intention was to go out and play any sport rather than thinking about achieving something I just wanted to go out and play so that my mind was busy When you play a sport not only cricket you learnso many things in general about lifeAjinkya Rahane gets candid about critics and his comebackWhat was your routine likeMy routine initially was cricket practice in the morning then in the afternoon I had school and in the evening I had karate classesHow did you pave your path to the Mumbai Ranji teamI started my cricket coaching at Dronacharya Cricket Club in Dombivli My first coach was Mr Khatu There were U14 selection trials I was nine or 10 at that time During a tournament in Worli I was representing Thane district and we went for the selections I hardly faced four to five balls and they told me to come out of the nets Later they told me that I was selected I was really happy but after five minutes they told me that I was out The reason they said was that I was still young and there are guys who are 13 or 14 and they should get a chance I could wait I dont know what happened after that but one of the coaches went to the selectors and told them that my technique looked really good and they should keep me in the team He also tried to explain to them that keeping me out would affect meWhat was going on inside your mindI really do not know I was just relaxing and talking to my father I will always remember this incident I do not know how to put it but when my father was sitting with one of the parents he overheard that parent talking to some other guy He said Yeh ladka kya khelega yaar Is mein kuch dikhayi nahin de raha hai Itna chhota dikh raha hai What will this kid play He does not have anything to show and he is very young My father did not say a word Then one of the coaches went up to the selector and told him that they will keep me in the team Luckily I was in Then thank God during my first game one of our opening batsmen got injured and I got an opportunity and won the Man of the Match award in my first game itself The journey started from thereAjinkya RahaneHow important is it to grab opportunities with both handsDefinitely its very important but for me it was all about enjoying myself and having fun on the field Now this is important because sometimes when you think about the result you put pressure on yourself Life is easy but we put pressure on ourselves We sometimes run after success and results We do not think about thesimple thingsIt must have been a lot of funI play cricket because its my love and passion While batting you should not forget to enjoy each and every ball The same applies when you are defending leaving the ball and playing any shot mdash you should enjoy it and not think about scoring a hundred fifty 150 or whatever If you begin thinking on those lines then you are thinking about a result and start putting pressure on yourself Sport is all about going out there and enjoying oneselfWhat about your first Ranji Trophy seasonIt was not that great They selectors were thinking about dropping me but I want to thank Pravin Amre sir Mumbai coach He really backed me in my first season From my second season onwards I did really well Because of my Ranji Trophy performance I got the opportunity to represent my country Thats why Ranji Trophy is so special Every youngster whatever state they represent has to give importance to domestic cricket especially Ranji Trophy cricketBut with T20s coming into the mix how can an upcoming cricketer give that due importance to domestic cricketIts important to keep it simple important to focus on whatever format you are playing If your basics are strong you can play in any format If you are only thinking about T20 cricket then its challenging to get back to four or fiveday cricketAjinkya Rahane autographs a midday diary at the eventHow did you bounce back after going through a bad phase in your first Ranji seasonI was really nervous I did well during my U19 days for Indian Oil Then in the second year Pravin sir and I had a chat He told me to focus on my controllables keep working hard and not worry about anything else For me Ranji Trophy was something different after coming from U17 and U19 My intention was to just work hard Attitude and work ethics are very important for a sportsperson those small things matter a lot So from the second year onwards my focus was to just bat bat and bat I tried to learn each and everything from every cricketerWhat was going on in your mind Was it a mix of emotionsYou should know what your strengths are Yes Pravin sir Wasim Jaffer all of them discussed my batting with me and the one thing they told me was to enjoy my batting Sometimes when you are in a pressure situation its natural to doubt yourself We tend to think about so many things For me its all about serving I am representing India so my aim is to serve my country rather than think about scoring a hundred My aim is to contribute to my countrys cause If you are selfless and focus on your team rather than yourself results will automatically followWhat do you remember of your international debut in 2011I made my debut in the T20 format at Manchester but let me tell you about the day I got the news of my selection I was at home and got a phone call from BCCI about being selected I went and told my mom She was very emotional at that time and was lost for words She hugged me because she knew I had worked really hard for those five to six years in domestic cricket Manchester gave me the biggest moment to represent my country in the shorter formatYou have a great overseas record and Virat Kohli called you a gem when it comes to overseas matchesBefore any series or tour I do my preparation and keep it very simple In England the conditions change within 15 to 20 minutes It all depends on the weather but playing close to your body in England playing as late as possible and having the patience to wait for that loose ball is very important My practice sessions at BKC were all about focusing on playing late and playing close to my bodyHas the constant shuffling of your batting position in limited overs cricket affected youNo I am at all worried I know I can come back into the limited overs squads and I know how to make a comeback I believe that if I am confident and my intentions are right it will just be a matter of time Its all about believing in yourself rather than focussing on what people say I do not read newspapers I work on my controllables andpractice hardYour life has been full of challenges How do you cope with obstaclesI always feel that one should enjoy every moment in life There should not be any fluctuation Unknowingly we all as human beings try to capture everything but its not that Life is all about giving We should learn from each and every person even if they are junior or senior to you There should be no ego clashes Give more than your 100 per cent to what you have been called to do and enjoy success and failure at the same timeAlso ReadDid you know these Mumbai boys became captains of the Indian cricket teamCatch up on all the latest T20 news and updates here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates