India vs Australia, 4th Test: Ajinkya Rahane shows Dhoni-like presence as Virat Kohli stars as off-field captain

Dharamsala: Temperamentally, they are like chalk and cheese but for every Virat Kohli, you need an Ajinkya Rahane as they come together to create a nice balance of caution and aggression that any champion outfit needs.

Rahane showed that he is unique as a leader but Kohli also reminded one and all that shoulder bruise can’t force him to lie low.

So what if he is not out there in the middle but Kohli was the non-playing captain on the day, carrying drinks during one of the breaks with opposition skipper Steve Smith on the rampage.

When Kuldeep Yadav returned to his fielding position at the boundary after dismissing David Warner, Kohli walked up with a bottle of energy drink with some valuable tips for the rookie spinner.

“He (Virat) congratulated me on my maiden wicket and reminded me of our plans about various batsmen. If your captain is not playing yet motivating from outside, it can’t get better than this,” Kuldeep said at the end of the day’s play.

Rahane, on the other hand, was different and distinct in his style of leadership. He stood at slips, took a couple of good catches, discussed with another senior Cheteshwar Pujara while making some changes in bowling.

It was more of a Dhoni like presence. When Umesh Yadav misfielded with a ball taking a wicked spin, there was a smile rather than frown.

And yes, not for once in the 88.3 overs did he use the Decision Review System. Not that there was any close calls but he didn’t even bother about half-hearted appeals, something different from Kohli.

Matthew Wade found a “calm” Indian team on the field without a lot of noise.

“I thought they were very, very good. They were calm and went about their work today. They weren’t over-excited, they just went about their work.