Rahane thrived on 'nerves' in Leicestershire debut

Ajinkya Rahane was signed by Leicestershire as a replacement for Wiaan Mulder

Ajinkya Rahane says he used the nerves he had about his Leicestershire debut to thrive in their One-Day Cup opening win against Nottinghamshire.

The 36-year-old former India captain scored an assured 71 in the rain-hit victory for the defending champions at their Uptonsteel County Ground home.

It was a highly-anticipated first appearance by the hugely experienced batter, after a Test recall saw him miss out on a stint at the Foxes last season.

“Before the game I was really nervous,” Rahane told BBC Radio Leicester.

“But I always like that feeling, if you are nervous before the game, any game, it means you care. I thought it was a very good feeling to have before the game started.

“But once I went in and played 10 or 15 balls, I was confident.”

Leicestershire were cruising at 174-2 when Rahane – a player who has amassed more than 34,000 runs in all formats across his career - came to the crease for the first time for the Foxes.

He replaced opener Sol Budinger, who was dismissed for 75, and joined captain Lewis Hill – who would top score with 81 – in the middle.

“When I went in, it was all about reading the situation because we had a very good opening stand and the partnership was really good,” Rahane said.

“I wanted to continue that momentum for the team and play a positive innings."

Rahane’s maiden half-century for the Foxes included nine boundaries before he was caught by Freddie McCann off Lyndon James’ bowling.

"What time I spent in the middle was really good and enjoyable," Rahane said.

"The feeling was really good."

Leicestershire are back in action on Friday, as they host Warwickshire in their second group game of the competition.