How Suresh Raina adapted his batting to ensure he will be remembered as a white-ball great for India

Suresh Raina’s ball-striking ability was spoken of in India’s cricketing circles since he was a young boy. Every once in a while, there comes a player whose talent shines through so brightly that it’s almost easy to predict they will go a long way. Raina was one such player.

For Uttar Pradesh, Mohammad Kaif was the batting hero in the first half of the 2000s. But around the time he stole the spotlight with his NatWest Trophy heroics in 2002, Raina was starting to make a mark at the age-group level. And as Kaif himself put it, the southpaw’s popularity in his state was always unparalleled.

Raina was a prolific scorer in junior cricket. After captaining the UP Under-16 team, he quickly rose to the India U-19 side and the Ranji Trophy. He, Manoj Tiwary and Ambati Rayudu were the young batsmen making the most buzz around that time. But it was Raina who broke into the Indian team first, with a One-Day International against Sri Lanka in 2005.

His legacy may well be defined by his shot-making in the shorter formats but in the early phase of his career, Raina was very much a classical batsman. An uncomplicated stance, good balance and a clean swing of the bat meant his strokes always looked attractive.

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However, the most appealing aspect of his batting was the power he generated in his shots. For a not-so-big guy, he always packed a solid punch. He could simply nudge the ball for boundaries both off the front and back foot. And, he was never in two minds while at the crease. He had that fearless streak in him and he always stayed true to his character.

Raina remained a consistent performer for India in white-ball cricket but didn’t achieve the same kind of success in Tests. And there’s an explanation for both these developments.

Firstly, despite starting his Test career with a bang by scoring a century on debut, Raina could never cement his place in the longest format because of a critical flaw in his batting – the inability to tackle short-pitched bowling. This remained his Achilles heel throughout his career as bowlers around the world attacked him with the short stuff.

While on the one hand he struggled for answers in Tests, Raina developed a strong weapon for white-ball cricket – the aerial shots. He always looked awkward against short-pitched bowling but in limited-overs cricket, he found ways to survive.

When it came to other lines and lengths, he knew how to find the boundary. Be it stepping wide and hitting over cover, dancing down the pitch to spinners, cutting, glancing, or his favourite – hoicking over mid-wicket – Raina had an array of run-scoring shots for the white ball.

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His transformation from a batsman who relied more on conventional strokes to someone who could innovate and hit over the in-field at will was rapid. It coincided with the advent of the T20 format and the Indian Premier League.

The IPL was introduced not long after Raina made his international debut and the left-hander took to it immediately. Not only did his consistency bode well for the Chennai Super Kings, but it also translated into a big positive for the Indian team.

At the start of his career, it was all about the big runs. The back-to-back centuries in Under-19 cricket, the back-to-back double-hundreds. But with the IPL gaining prominence, Raina’s moulded his game in such a way that he became a specialist in limited-overs cricket. It wasn’t about the three-figure scores anymore, his job was specific – adapt to the match-situation in the middle order and take the team home.

And in that role, Raina was indispensable to the Indian team for the better part of a decade.

Raina was the first player to score a century in each of the three formats for India. His numbers tell a story by themselves but what they don’t show are his numerous match-winning cameos. Like he did in the quarter and semi-finals of the 2011 World Cup, the 33-year-old consistently chipped in with those 30s and 40s. And the importance of such contributions cannot be overstated.

He may well be remembered more for his achievements with CSK, after all there are so many, but Raina’s contribution to the Indian team in limited-overs cricket is undeniable too. He was a genuine match-winner and along with his electrifying fielding and commitment on the field, he played his part in ushering in a new era for India’s white-ball teams.