“I thought personally the Indian team needed me in Australia” - Ajinkya Rahane opens up on missing out on BGT 2024-25

Ajinkya Rahane voices his strong disappointment over being excluded from India's BGT 2024-25 squad in Australia, stating his experience was needed and criticizing the lack of communication from selectors.

27 Oct 2025 10:59 IST

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Former Indian middle-order batter Ajinkya Rahane has emphasized that his experience would’ve helped the Indian team in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 campaign Down Under, adding that age shouldn’t be a criterion for the national team selection.

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Speaking to the media after his 159-run knock off 303 balls with 21 fours for Mumbai against Chhattisgarh in the ongoing Ranji Trophy 2025-26 campaign, Rahane has opened up on missing out on the flight to Australia last year.

“Age is just a number. As a player. If you have the experience, if you are still playing domestic cricket, if you are still giving your best, I think selectors should consider (for selection),” Rahane said.

“It's not about the age. It's about the intent. It's about the passion for the red-ball (cricket) and it's about the hard work which you put in the middle — that's what matters to me so I don't believe in that completely,” he added.

Rahane, who last played a Test in July 2023 against the West Indies, has taken an example from Michael Hussey, who made his debut in his late 30s and went on to do well for his national team.

“In Australia (if) you see. Michael Hussey made his debut in his late 30s, and still, he made runs. Experience matters in red-ball cricket, and I thought personally the Indian team needed me in Australia — that's my personal feeling,” Rahane observed.

Though Rahane made his comeback to the Indian Test team in the World Test Championship 2023 Final against Australia at The Oval, he couldn’t get enough opportunities after the two-match Test series against the West Indies in July 2023 despite doing well in domestic cricket and the IPL.

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“I made my comeback in the 2023 WTC final, and before that, I played two years of domestic cricket (where) I did really well. I (also) did well in the IPL and got into the WTC final in which I made my comeback,” he noted.

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