Rachin Ravindra takes pride in his strong India connect and ethnicity, which only deepened with his maiden ODI ton in the World Cup opener in Ahmedabad, but the all-rounder considers himself a "complete Kiwi" just like teammate Devon Conway.
Born to Indian parents in Wellington, Ravindra has his family roots in Bengaluru, while Conway migrated to New Zealand from South Africa in 2017 for better cricketing opportunities. And on Thursday, Ravindra (123 not out off 96 balls) and Conway (152 not out off 121) hammered England's bowling attack into submission to power New Zealand to a comfortable nine-wicket win over the defending champions.
"We're both sort of Kiwis now. I was born in New Zealand and my family's from India, but I completely see myself as a Kiwi and obviously very proud of my roots and my ethnicity," Ravindra said at the post-match press conference on Thursday.
"I think Devon (Conway) would be the same. I think he's sort of adopted New Zealand as his home for the last 5-6 years and I'd say he's completely Kiwi. So, I mean, being able to win a game for your nation is always special," he added.
Chasing England's 282 for 9, the duo shared an unbeaten 273, the fourth-highest partnership for any wicket, to canter to victory in 36.2 overs.
Talking about the scintillating partnership with Conway, Ravindra said the plan was to keep things simple.
"It was just (about) trying to keep it pretty simple. I think the way me and Dev (Conway) sort of went about it, being able to check in with each other ball after ball and making sure what's important stays important," he said.
"The process and your routines, as opposed to just blindly trying to take someone down or do something rash."
Ravindra was named after two Indian cricket icons — Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar, whom he idolises.
His first name Rachin was derived from 'Ra' of Rahul Dravid and 'chin' of Sachin Tendulkar. "I think those two (Dravid and Tendulkar) are pretty special cricketers," he said.
"Obviously, I've heard a lot of stories and watched a lot of footage. I guess the influence from my parents and my dad, sort of, and the old-school Indian cricketers was pretty cool.
"Being able to watch a lot of their highlights and stuff… obviously, I idolise Sachin Tendulkar, I think a lot of people do. I think the way he batted, his technique was beautiful to watch," he added.
