Ajinkya Rahane differs from Dale Steyn, says IPL gave ‘platform to express’

Steyn stirred a furore on social media after his comments on IPL came to light. Steyn said that he pulled out of the IPL because other leagues are more rewarding. Rahane in stark contrast to Steyn said that IPL provides a platform for talent to express themselves.

Ajinkya Rahane turned out for Delhi Capitals franchise last season. (Photo: BCCI/IPL)

Indian vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane, who has been a regular in the Indian Premier League (IPL) now first with Rajasthan Royals and now with Delhi Capitals, has played down comments made by former South Africa paceman Dale Steyn about India’s T20 league. Steyn had recently commented on IPL in comparison with PSL.  

Rahane in stark contrast to Steyn said that IPL provides a platform for talent to express themselves. “See, I am here to talk about the fourth Test match and not here to talk about PSL or Sri Lanka Premier League. IPL gave us that platform to express ourselves and also to a lot of Indians and overseas players. I am not sure what Dale Steyn has said, I am here to talk about this Test match,” Rahane said at a virtual press conference on Tuesday (March 2).  

Earlier, Steyn stirred a furore on social media after his comments on IPL came to light. Steyn said that he pulled out of the IPL because other leagues are more rewarding.  

“I have found that playing in other leagues was slightly more rewarding as a player,” Steyn said on a YouTube channel Cricket Pakistan. 

Steyn said that in IPL the emphasis is on money and not cricket which gets forgotten. “When you go to IPL, there are such big squads and there are so many big names and there’s so much emphasis on the amount of money that the players earn that sometimes, somewhere along the line the cricket gets forgotten,” he added. 

"When you come to like the PSL or the Sri Lankan Premier League, for that matter, there is an importance on cricket. I have only been here for a couple of days and I have had people in and out of my room, just wanting to know about where I have played and how I went about it," Steyn felt.