Archive · 6 Aug 2026
Kohli-Rahane Partnership Thrived on Trust and Honest Communication
Ajinkya Rahane is a famous cricketer from India.
He recently stopped playing cricket.
He used to bat together with Virat Kohli, another great Indian cricketer.
The two were very good at scoring runs as a team.
Rahane says their secret was being honest with each other.
Virat is very bold and aggressive, while Rahane is calm and patient.
Together, they were a great mix.
They scored a lot of runs — 3,661 in total.
Virat always told Rahane to trust himself and play his own game.
Rahane also led India to win a famous series in Australia.
Ajinkya Rahane, who recently retired from all forms of cricket, said the Kohli-Rahane batting partnership thrived on trust and frank communication.
He credited their contrasting approaches — Kohli's aggression and his own calm nature — for complementing each other well.
The pair scored 3,661 runs together in 67 Test innings at an average of 51.45.
They recorded 14 fifty-run partnerships and 12 century stands, making them the fifth-most prolific Indian batting pair in Test history.
Rahane said Kohli encouraged him to trust his instincts and play without hesitation, and the two often talked cricket off the field.
- Who
- Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane, former Test captain and vice-captain of India
- What
- Rahane explained on 'The Overlap Cricket' podcast that trust and honest communication underpinned their successful batting partnership
- When
- Recently, following Rahane's retirement from all forms of cricket
- Where
- On 'The Overlap Cricket' podcast, discussing their time playing Test cricket for India
- Why
- Because their contrasting approaches — Kohli's aggression and Rahane's calm nature — combined with frank, positive communication made their batting together succeed
- Batting partners
- Virat Kohli & Ajinkya Rahane
- Runs together
- 3,661 runs in 67 Test innings
- Partnership average
- 51.45
- Fifty-run partnerships
- 14
- Century stands
- 12
- Test history ranking
- Fifth-most prolific Indian batting pair
- Away-from-home record
- 1,950 runs in 42 Tests
- Platform
- The Overlap Cricket podcast