Last November, as he made his way into the record books, he was greeted by chants of ‘Ra-chin, Raa-chin’ at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. Rachin Ravindra, from Wellington but with roots in Bengaluru, where his parents are from, dismantled Pakistan in a World Cup match en route to becoming the first New Zealander to score three centuries in a single edition of under-50 cricket’s showpiece -plus people. .

It is a chant that until then was the exclusive preserve of one of the two great Indian cricketers of all time after whom he is named. ‘Sa-chin, Saa-chin’ reverberated from stands at venues across India, as well as many other parts of the world, for almost a quarter of a century that Sachin Tendulkar entertained and enthralled cricket fans. Ravindra must have been thrilled that it happened on a ground where the other legend he is named after, Rahul Dravid, cut his teeth as a cricketer.

If the applause wasn’t so rampant at the Chinnaswamy on Friday when Ravindra scored his second Test century, it was only because India were on the receiving end of his lashings. But there was admiration, and not of the grudging kind, from a large crowd who were engrossed in his wonderful strokeplay, against both pace and spin.

His father, Ravi Krishnamurthy, and his grandparents looked on proudly as Ravindra glittered and hissed. While he is aware and grateful for his connections with India and Bengaluru, he himself admits that Ravindra is a proud Kiwi. But it must have been special for him to bring up a coveted milestone in a city where his parents are from, and which has embraced him as its own without reservation.

Five and a half years ago, Ravindra sat in a pub in MG Road, not far from the Chinnaswamy, despairing as England won the 2019 World Cup title without beating New Zealand in the final at Lord’s. Little could he have imagined then that he would make history in the next edition of the same competition, or that he would gradually move up the batting order from No. 7 to No. 4 and make himself an important part of the team, while only just washed. 24.

Ravindra’s first try with Test cricket in India came in November 2021 when he and Ajaz Patel thwarted India’s bid for victory in Kanpur by playing almost nine overs when they were the last pair at the crease. In the next Test in Mumbai, Ravindra took the catch that heralded Mohammed Siraj’s dismissal and made Patel only the third bowler in the history of the game to take all ten wickets in an innings. Given that sequence, it’s probably not surprising that he became the first Kiwi to hit triple figures on this tour, or that he combined the daring and guts of a Kiwi with the Eastern pulse of the subcontinent to deliver a very endearing script. to write.

The CSK is handing over Rachin Ravindra’s success

Before this Test series, Ravindra spent time at the Chennai Super Kings Academy where he mainly worked on his game against spin. R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav were the biggest threats as far as New Zealand was concerned; Ravindra systematically dismantled the trio, using his feet brilliantly to dance around the court or cut deep to play powerfully and confidently from the back foot.

Not many non-Asian teams are adept at getting onto the track to counter the Indian spinners. This New Zealand lace is cut from a different material. Devon Conway and Daryl Mitchell both showed excellent footwork, but it was Ravindra who took the crown. He made good use of his height and gave a masterclass in the art of getting onto the field and ignoring turns. He was also imperious against Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah, taking the ball from the off-stump and hitting it through mid-wicket when it was tossed up, or going straight back and punching his wrists through the same area if the length was shorter.

He had a few close calls, but that may not be more than he deserved considering the free spirit he brought with him to the middle. Particularly impressive was the speed at which he scored without making any apparent attempt to force the pace. The boundaries came quickly enough that the time he spent in the middle counted in the form of runs, and his ability to switch gears from the moment Tim Southee came in at number 9 after a mini-collapse showed a maturity beyond his age was far beyond his years. and experience.

Ravindra couldn’t have hoped for a better start to the series. With Pune and Mumbai on the horizon, he will believe that the sky is the limit. Perhaps next month he will also evoke chants of ‘Ra-chin, Raa-chin’ in the Wankhede. Wouldn’t that be something?