Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli, and Cheteshwar Pujara, The three mainstays of the Indian Test Cricket Team have provided Indian fans with countless heroics, most of which have played key roles in India's successes both at home and abroad.
However, things are looking bleak for all three of them right now. Pujara, Kohli, and Rahane have appeared out of sorts for the majority of the last two years, particularly this year. There have been isolated flashes of brilliance, but none of them appear to have played a match-defining innings this year, at least by the lofty standards they have established. Are they truly out of form? How long will this last? Is it really necessary for India to look beyond its best players?
These are the few questions that arise whenever one of them fails. I attempted and crunched a few figures using python, provided graphical representations using Data Science-based skills to bring clarity to the facts based on the statistics that were gathered from www.howstat.com
Virat Kohli: The Modern Day Master
For the longest time, Virat Kohli has been the heart of the Indian team across all forms, particularly Tests. His charismatic batsmanship and leadership have helped India win numerous games. He was the fastest player in history to reach 7000 runs (138 innings), demonstrating his brilliance and the ease with which runs came off Virat's bat. He also holds the record for most Test double-hundreds as a captain with (7), two double hundreds more than Brian Lara, who has 5 double hundreds to his name as a skipper.
Virat Kohli: Runs Per Year since Debut
He has 7854 runs with an outstanding average of 50.35 runs since his debut in 2011. His best seasons were in 2016, 2017, and 2018, when he accumulated 1215, 1059, and 1322 runs, respectively.
Virat from 2013 to 2018
In between 2013 and 2018 Virat averaged a whopping 823 runs per year, in these years, India toured England and Australia twice and toured New Zealand and South Africa once. In spite of a disastrous tour of England in 2014, where he averaged a lowly 14 in the entire test series, Virat came back strongly in 2018 to amass 593 runs in 5 Tests. His career graph only grew in stature as years went by since his debut in 2011.
He scored 20 hundreds 20 fifties in this period and averaged a magnificent 52.6 runs every year.
Virat’s Stats from 2013 to 2018
Runs Scored Per Year During This Period
In this period, Virat played 105 innings and averaged 58.31 runs per inning. He averaged an astounding 949.83 runs per year in this period. He was well and truly unstoppable during this period, miles ahead of his contemporaries.
Virat from 2019 to 2021
In the period from 2019 to 2021, 2019 'just another' Virat year where he plundered 612 runs in the year and scored 2 hundreds and 2 fifties in the 11 innings he batted. It was during this year he scored his highest test score of 254* against South Africa at Pune.
However, 2019 turned out to be a peak before a blip in form for Virat. He scored his last 100 against Bangladesh in a Pink-ball test at Kolkata and hasnt been able to score a 100 since. Kohli's most disappointing year had to be 2021. He played 19 innings and scored 536 runs at an average of a lowly 28.3 runs per inning. His similar mode of dismissals in England and now in the first test against South Africa did not help his case either as he was caught fishing outside the off-stump on numerous occasions.
Virat's stats from 2019 to 2021
Runs Scored Per Year During This Period (2019-2021)
In this period, Virat played 36 innings and averaged 38.51 runs per inning. Although the no. of years aren’t exactly the same in both periods, it is a startling drop in the batting average which was at 58.31 runs during the 2013-18 period. He averaged 421.33 runs per year in this period as compared to the average of 949.83 runs per year from the 2013-18 period.
Ajinkya Rahane: The Middle-order Glue
Ajinkya Rahane has been a reliable no.5 batter for India since his debut on most occasions. Rahane waited for almost 2 years and 17 tests to make his Test Debut which he eventually did in 2013 against Australia. Rahane has had a knack for playing important knocks in dire situations. His 103 at Lords in 2014, 147 at Melbourne in 2014, all came at critical junctures where India needed him to step up.
Ajinkya Rahane: Runs Per Year Since Debut
His peak came from 2014 to 2016 where he averaged 653 runs per year and scored runs at will. Due to his indifferent form off-late, he has seen his batting average fall below 40 for the first time ever in his career. He has amassed 4863 runs so far with a batting average of 39.22 with his highest Test score being 188.
Ajinkya Rahane from 2013 to 2018
Ajinkya Rahane had a brilliant 2014, scoring runs at will, including crucial 100s in England and a game-changing 147 against Australia. During this time, he averaged 578 runs each year and continued to provide significant runs. His annual average was about 42 runs per innings, which might be attributable to the fact that he frequently found himself in situations where he needed to speed up the scoring rate. Having said that, numerous people complained about him being a little erratic, but he kept coming back with opportune innings that allowed him to float in a team where he was the designated vice-captain.
Rahane’s Stats from 2013 to 2018
Runs Scored Per Year During This Period (2013-18)
In this period, Rahane played 94 innings and averaged 42.28 runs per inning. He averaged 578.33 runs per year in this period the graphical representation for which has been provided above.
Ajinkya Rahane from 2019 to 2021
Rahane had a strong 2019 where he amassed 642 runs at a healthy average of 71 which saw him score 2 hundred and 5 fifties which made it one of his better years. However, the next 2 years have been nothing but a disappointment. At a dismal average of 29.8 runs per inning. His only hundred came in Melbourne where he scored a timely inning as a captain when the team needed him the most. The rest has been ordinary, to say the least. He has shown flashes of brilliance but his lack of inconsistency has cost him his position of vice-captain and is under pressure with Shreyas Iyer and Hanuma Vihari ready in the wings to grab the no.5 spot.
Rahane’s Stats from 2019 to 2021
Runs Scored Per Year During This Period (2019-21)
In this period, Rahane played 42 innings and averaged 43.51 runs per inning. He averaged 464.33 runs per year in this period as compared to the average of 578.33 runs per year from the 2013-18 period. Although the no. of years aren’t exactly the same in both periods, the main cause of concern however has been his form in 2020 and 2021. Rahane averaged a paltry 29.84 per innings in 31 innings.
Cheteshwar Pujara: The Wall 2.0
Cheteshwar Pujara has been projected as Rahul Dravid's heir to the No.3 position since his debut, given their similar gameplay and personality. Needless to say, 'Pujji,' as his teammates affectionately refer to him, has been a solid wall on the majority of instances. Throughout his career, he has been chastised for his strike rate and the currently over-used term and Cricket Twitter's best friend: Intent.
On countless occasions, he has kept the team together by playing for a time when the situation called for it. With a batting average of 44.3, he has unquestionably held the batting lead multiple times.
Cheteshwar Pujara: Runs per Year Since Debut
His best year was 2017 where he scored 1140 runs in a single year at an average of 67 runs per inning. He scored 4 hundreds and 5 fifties which included a double 100 against Australia. His other double centuries came early in his career in 2012 and 2013 where he averaged 81 and 75 runs respectively.
Cheteshwar Pujara from 2013 to 2018
His two prolific years in 2012 and 2013, where he scored 2 double hundreds in 2 years were perhaps his finest ever years for India.
Barring a minor blip in 2014, Pujara has been a prolific run-scorer for India at no.3 and sometimes even at the opening position when the need arised. He averaged 581 runs per year during these years at a healthy average of 46 runs per innings.
This period saw him play the longest innings played by an Indian batsman in terms of balls (525) when he scored 202 against Australia at Ranchi.
Pujara’s Stats from 2013 to 2018
Runs Scored Per Year During This Period (2013-18)
In this period, Pujara played 113 innings and averaged 51.65 runs per innings. He averaged 745.33 runs per year in this period the graphical representation for which has been provided above.
Cheteshwar Pujara from 2019 to 2021
Cheteshwar Pujara had a decent 2019 where he scored 507 runs at an average of 46 runs per innings but since then, Pujara has been indifferent. He has had 2 average years, 2020 and 2021 where he has averaged 20 and 28 respectively. Yes, the numbers do suggest he has scored 702 runs but they haven’t been his fluent best.
He played important knocks at Sydney and at Gabba where he took body blows for the team and scored the fifties where he had to work for every run he scored. But the worrying fact is that India's No.3 has scored a solitary 100 in the last 3 years at an average of 31 runs per innings, 15 runs lesser than what he averaged in 2013 to 2018.
Pujara’s Stats from 2019 to 2021
Runs Scored Per Year During This Period (2019-21)
In this period, Pujara played 45 innings and averaged 31.51 runs per innings, which was a drop from 46.65 runs per innings which he averaged in the 2013-18 period. He averaged 457.33 runs per year in 2019-21 as compared to the average of 581.44 runs per year from the 2013-18 period.
Now we will analyze their batting averages per inning from the 201-21 period together and understand how steady their batting form has declined in the last 3 years. Firstly, I collected their batting averages together by applying an ‘inner join’ to the stats I had at hand.
As shown in the table below, all three of them average in the ’20s in the year 2021.
It is startling to see how the backbone of the Indian Test Team, the powerhouse which was so reliable a few years ago, began their steady decline together. All three (Pujara, Kohli, Rahane) of them averaged a healthy 46.09, 68.00, 71.33 in 2019 and now average 28.08, 28.21, 20.33 respectively in the year that went by.
Umpire's Call: My Take
It’s no big secret that all three of them look woefully out of form based on the numbers that are for everyone to see. They look pale shadows of themselves with Pujara, Kohli and Rahane averaging 28.08, 28.21, 20.83 respectively. The graph above shows an unreal decline in batting averages for all three of them.
Batting Average of Pujara in 2019: 46.09
Batting Average of Pujara in 2021: 28.08
Batting Average of Kohli in 2019: 68.00
Batting Average of Kohli in 2021: 28.21
Batting Average of Rahane in 2019: 71.33
Batting Average of Rahane in 2021: 20.83
In terms of the middle order, the data show that India may be on the verge of a transition in the near future. But how far into the future are we talking? How many more chances will Pujara and Rahane get before the management determines that young talents like Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer, as well as domestic veterans like Vihari, deserve to bat in the middle order?
The year 2022, in my opinion, will be a litmus test for all three of them. Rahane is aware that he is no longer the team's vice-captain, Kohli has just recently accepted his dismissal as white-ball skipper, and Pujara is coming off a dismal start to the South Africa series. Should Pujara and Rahane be benched right away? In my opinion, no. Although the numbers may suggest differently, fortunately for them, the team is winning, and their failures are frequently obscured by a bowling assault that picks up 20 wickets for pleasure. India has the luxury of allowing their experienced campaigners a little more time to see if they can turn back the clock and do what they do best: score runs.
Virat's spot on the wing is a virtual certainty. My biassed Umpire's Call would put him on my team even if he scored 10 ducks in a row because he has earned it, and after all these years of unimaginable heights, it was time for the law of Averages to catch up with him a little.
With Virat at the helm of only the Test squad now, how can he convey to his colleagues, Rahane and Pujara, that it is time for India to look beyond them, given that he hasn't fared much better in the very same time frame? Only time will tell.
Loved the comprehensive analysis and perspective! Thoroughly enjoyed reading it
The way this is presented is brilliant! Hats off to the research, efforts and the final take! Love it how you owned it as biassed and still penned it so raw and confidently. Something for writers out there to take home.