Overview
- Ajinkya Rahane announced his retirement from all international cricket on July 30, 2026, ending a 13-year career that included 85 Tests, 90 ODIs and 20 T20Is.
- Gavaskar paid a public tribute that compared Rahane to Rahul Dravid and highlighted a captaincy record of four wins in six Tests with no losses.
- The column singled out Rahane’s role in India’s 2020–21 Border–Gavaskar Trophy turnaround, noting his century after the 36-all-out collapse and the series-clinching win at the Gabba.
- Rahane’s exit has already prompted squad changes and fresh opportunities for domestic players as selectors move forward with new Test lineups.
- Gavaskar used Rahane’s retirement to criticise how Indian cricket often credits individual performers for wins while assigning blame to captains in defeats, a point that reframes Rahane’s legacy and underlines talk of him taking mentoring roles going forward.