Oprah Winfrey once said, “Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you.” When you look at Indian cricketer Ajinkya Rahane, he reflects the same power when he focuses on the ground and it’s his passion that has made him come a long way in the gentleman’s game. Ajinkya’s success story is incomplete without his family and he affirms, “Life is pretty empty without the presence of an immediate family. Regardless of any success on the field, the truest moment of satisfaction always comes after spending time with family.” Today he feels content with everything he 
has achieved and believes that it is all about mental toughness, the ability to deal with unknown adversities, and perseverance that helps one make a mark in the highest level of the sport. In a detailed conversation with TMM, the cover man talks about his life journey where there is zero scope for any regret.
Your mom and dad have played a key role in your success story. What kind of bond do you share with them and take us through the early days?
My parents played an extremely instrumental role in shaping my early cricketing years. Our financial condition wasn’t the best, to the extent that we could barely afford a rickshaw ride for my cricket coaching. I still recall my mother carrying my kitbag in one arm and my other brother in the other as she walked me to my training ground that was around 6-8 kilometers away from our place.
After some persuasion from my side, my mother used to take a rickshaw once a week. Back then, I wasn’t really old enough to truly understand the reason behind such incidents. But, once I grew older, I realized that I couldn’t be more indebted and grateful to my parents for their invaluable contributions in building my career and life as a whole.
You have had a fantastic career on the ground till date. What keeps you calm and composed after seeing so much success?
Following the Vedanta philosophy pretty closely has helped me prioritize the more important aspects and things in life from the lesser important ones. Of course, it is always nice to relish the temporary gratifications once you attain some degree of success.
But, to consistently keep on doing the right thing requires composure and discipline, which are traits that have stayed on with me for a long time thereafter. Also, my father always stressed being remembered for more as a good human being than a successful cricketer. I think it is also correlated. Cricket comprises so much of a professional’s life that leading a good, measured lifestyle is essential for success on the ground too.
You started playing at an early age. Do you have any regrets about missing out on the fun-filled teenage?
See, when you are young, you prefer to be completely engrossed in a thing that you enjoy doing the most. That was cricket for me. So, despite putting in hours on the ground, I never felt like I was missing out on any childhood fun. Of course, I had friends and we played other than my professional training too.
But I honestly never felt like missing out on any sort of fun-filled teenage merely because I pursued cricket as a career. By the time I entered those years, the tone for my career was already set. Moreover, I was thoroughly enjoying the same so the thought of delving into other activities for fun never crossed my mind as such.
When you are on the ground, what is your driving force as a player and how do you handle the performance pressure?
Over the years, I have come to terms with the fact that it’s not always in our hands to control and determine the result of the game. But, maintaining a competitive attitude and continuously striving to emerge victoriously can shape the eventual outcome of the contests.
It is hence really important to truly enjoy playing the game, be thoroughly involved in the entire process irrespective of whether the wind is blowing your way or not. So yeah, I try to maintain that mastering over the controllable is the key in every field. I try to keep an optimistic attitude and look to search for solutions rather than pondering over the problems. That naturally eases any pressure off the shoulders and allows you to express yourself freely during the game.
Your Instagram profile says a fitness enthusiast. What fitness means to you and what is your favourite form of fitness?
Fitness has now become an irreplaceable part of my daily lifestyle. It’s true that keeping yourself in good shape is a non-negotiable in our sport. But, I truly believe that I would follow the same physical routine regardless of my involvement in cricket in the future. Just like the game, it has become a passion that is now difficult to separate oneself from.
It’s good though. A healthy body ensured mental well-being too, which is especially important given the busy lifestyles that we tend to lead. On my favourite form of fitness, I tend to balance between endurance and strength training. Both are very critical from a cricketing perspective too. But I guess the best form of exercise is engaging in a round of any sport with your friends. I almost never miss an opportunity to challenge my teammates or other friends for a game of badminton or football!
What role diet plays in your fitness routine and do you believe in diet fads?
You don’t want to undo the efforts put in the gym, do you? Haha, no, but seriously, diet is an undeniably important part of anyone’s fitness journey. But, I guess it is also important to keep it simple and not overcomplicate one’s habits to the extent that it becomes stressful to maintain that in the long term. Hence, I largely tend to depend on home-cooked and fresh food.
My wife is big on local produces and organic veggies, something that holds my diet in good stead as it ensures that I intake clean and fresh food regularly. My investments in the agri-business startup MeraKisan, which focuses mainly on the growth of organic farmers, aligns with my real-life dietary preferences too! I do indulge in cheat days once in a while though. Vada Pav continues to impress my taste buds like nothing else. But, I don’t necessarily believe in any kind of diet fad though!
You share a strong bond with your wife Radhika and daughter Aarya. How do you strike a balance between your work and personal life?
See, it’s important to ensure that our lives do not get completely overwhelmed by our profession. At the end of the day, you end up spending the majority of your time off-the-field, and hence to develop a fine balance between the personal and the professional angles of our life is very important. Both Radhika and now Aarya have helped me do that very conveniently. They are my absolute pillars of support, someone I can surely fall back on even the most testing of times.
Life is pretty empty without the presence of an immediate family, I believe. Regardless of any success on the field, the truest moment of satisfaction always comes after spending time with family. It’s almost difficult to put into words the incredible value they hold in my life.
If given a chance to choose another career at this stage, what will it be and why?
(Smiles) I haven’t really given much thought to this, given that cricket became the focal point of my life pretty early on.
Any advice for the aspiring players who wish to mark a space in the Indian cricket team?
My only message to aspiring players would be to work hard, be patient and trust the process. I think it is all about mental toughness, the ability to deal with unknown adversities, and perseverance that helps one make a mark in the highest level of the sport.
Photography by ColstonJULIAN
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