My job is to take back seat when Virat is there: Rahane

Different conditions, different series. It has been two weeks since Team India returned home after scripting an epic series win in Australia. Another tough opponent awaits them at home now in the form of Joe Root-led England. Ajinkya Rahane, who took over the team's reins in the absence of captain Virat Kohli, who went on paternity leave after the first Test in Adelaide, ensured the change was smooth for the remaining three Tests. And just as seamlessly, he is back in the role of the Indian vice-captain ahead of the four Test match series against England.

For Rahane, the return to being the deputy is nothing new or different. When asked whether the return of Kohli at the helm will energise the team differently, the soft-spoken middle-order batsman said, "Virat is the captain originally; he left Australia for family reasons. I am the vice-captain. I am really happy he is back. As a team we are focused on playing to our strengths."

Explaining how the duo work well in sync with each other despite differing personalities, Rahane said, "My job is to take a back seat [when Kohli is there]; to try and help him. There are too many things on the captain's mind when you are on the field. My job is to visualise situations, understand what can happen, if he comes and asks me what to do, I should be ready. My job [as vice captain] is easy."

Kohli's return also means Rahane may have to bat at his original batting position—number 5. The team man that he is, Rahane has no qualms about making the adjustments again. "A little bit of adjustment is needed but I am feeling really good about my batting.”

Rahane also brushed aside queries related to his white-ball cricket ambitions. “When you play Test cricket, that's all the focus is on. You think of what is required in that format. I am not thinking of white-ball cricket. This is a different ball-game altogether,” he said.

Switching off from the high of winning in Australia and refocusing on the series ahead is no easy task in such a short time. Both the body and mind need time to recover and reboot. "We did enjoy our victory in Brisbane and when we came back from Australia. We are in the present now. What we learnt from Australia, did from Adelaide onwards, it's all in the past. It's about staying in the moment, playing a good brand of cricket and taking one match at a time. England are a good side, and we respect them."

With Australia refusing to tour South Africa because of COVID-19 concerns, the winner of the India-England series will play the ICC World Test Championship Final at Lord's in July against New Zealand. Due to COVID-19 and the global lockdown in 2020 resulting in postponement of many bilateral series, the qualification criteria for the WTC finals, too, was tweaked by the ICC.

Rahane, however, said that the team was focusing on the upcoming Chennai Test match. “The WTC is still 3-4 months from now. For us, it's all about taking one game at a time against England. New Zealand played well and deserve to be there. We know that England are a very good team, and play very good cricket. We will see what happens later."

The Indian squad members entered the bio-bubble on January 27, after a brief time with friends and family post the Australia tour. Rahane assured that the Indian team was not feeling tired at all. "We are tough mentally. We have our families here, the team room is there where we spend time."

Rahane said though England players are playing in the IPL and both sides are familiar with each other's games, Tests are a totally different format and not much can be taken from familiarity.

He said the team combination will only be decided tomorrow. With all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja injured, it remains to be seen who will partner off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin at home—left-arm off-spinner Axar Patel or chinaman Kuldeep Yadav? "We know our home conditions. We are also playing at home after two years. We are backing our own game, sticking to our strengths and keeping it really simple."