Ajinkya Rahane to play for Leicestershire this season

According to recent reports, Leicestershire have signed Indian cricketer Ajinkya Rahane for the current county season.

The 35-year-old, who turns 36 in four days, surprisingly signed a contract with Leicestershire the season before. His participation was, however, hindered by his engagement in the World Test Championship 2023 final against Australia and then a two-match Test series against the West Indies the following month. He withdrew due to these obligations, stating that he was in need of a break from the rigorous cricket schedule.

Rahane will be playing in his second stint in England’s top red-ball competition when he joins Leicestershire in their 2024 County Championship Division Two campaign. In 2019, he played for Hampshire and amassed 307 runs in 13 innings.

Although The Times of India covered the story today, they omitted any other information that is included in the contract.

The longtime stalwart, who began his First Class cricket career in 2007 and has amassed 13225 runs in 318 innings, endured a forgettable Ranji campaign even though he guided Mumbai to victory in the 2015-16 season, ending an eight-year trophy drought. In the 2020–21 four-match Test series against Australia, Rahane led India to a historic 2-1 series win. However, he only amassed 214 runs at a poor average of 17.83 in eight matches.

Prithvi Shaw, Karun Nair, Siddharth Kaul, and Cheteshwar Pujara are among the Indian players adorning county sides this season. The other three players are representing Northamptonshire, but Pujara is representing Sussex.

After their formalities with their respective counties are completed, Rahane and Shaw will then report to Mumbai’s pre-season training.

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