New Zealand batsman Rachin Ravindra said on Thursday that hitting a match-winning century in the World Cup opener was inspired by watching images of Indian cricket icons Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid, after whom he is named. With a first name consisting of ‘Ra’ for Rahul and ‘chin’ for Sachin, Ravindra, owing to his father’s love for the game, lived up to his name in spectacular fashion. He hit 123 in an unbeaten stand of 273 with Devon Conway as New Zealand cruised to a nine-wicket win against defending champions England in Ahmedabad.
The 23-year-old Ravindra, whose parents moved to New Zealand from the southern Indian city of Bengaluru, reached his ton shortly after fellow left-hander Conway got his hundred in front of a sparse crowd at the 132,000-seater stadium.
He hit 11 fours and five sixes in his 96-ball innings and admitted he was inspired by Dravid and Tendulkar.
“I think these two are pretty special cricketers,” he said.
“I obviously heard a lot of stories and watched a lot of footage and I think the influence of my parents and the old-school Indian cricketers was pretty cool.
“Because I could see a lot of their highlights and stuff. Obviously, I idolized Sachin Tendulkar. I think, as a left-hander, I have guys where you look at, I like (Brian) Lara, I like (Kumar) Sangakkara, just the usual weapon for lefties.”
Wellington-born Ravindra reached his 82-ball ton with nine fours and four sixes as New Zealand reached their target of 283 with 13.4 overs to spare on Thursday.
“I think a hundred is always special, but I think it’s pretty cool to be able to perform in India. It’s cool to have Indian roots,” Ravindra told reporters.
“It was also nice to have my parents there and they flew over from New Zealand, so it’s cool to have that moment and of course it’s always nice to come to India.
“I feel a sense of family connection when I am in Bangalore and can see my grandparents.”
Ravindra has impressed in just thirteen ODI matches since his debut in March this year.
Promoted to number three, Ravindra made up with his good friend Conway.
“Dev is an absolutely incredible and special player. I think it was pretty cool to share the court with him,” Ravindra said.
“I’ve spent a lot of time with him over the last five or six years and watched him grow into one of the best hitters in the world. It’s pretty cool to share that milestone with him.”
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