"It's not the end of the road" - Aakash Chopra on Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara getting dropped from India's Test side
Aakash Chopra believes Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara getting dropped from India's squad for the Test series against Sri Lanka does not imply the end of the road for the duo.
Rahane and Pujara were given a long rope in India's Test side despite the two veterans going through a prolonged lean run. However, their underwhelming performances in the Test series against South Africa proved to be the final nail in the coffin.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra did not rule out the possibility of Rahane and Pujara staging a comeback in the longest format, saying:
"Rahane and Pujara are not there. India have started moving in a slightly different direction. It's not the end of the road but they are not part of the team as of now. It means they will have to go back to first-class cricket, score runs there and make an attempt to come back."
However, the former Indian cricketer believes the experienced batters are unlikely to be seen in international cricket in 2022. Aakash Chopra reasoned:
"They will not come back this year, they can come back next year because this year all the series are in India except the one Test in England. So nothing is going to happen there. If you leave out such big players, you don't bring them back in 15 days."
Rahane has already scored a century in Mumbai's first innings of the ongoing Ranji Trophy match against Saurashtra. However, Pujara was dismissed for a duck in the same encounter.
"Ishant Sharma and Wriddhiman Saha - I think that's the finale" - Aakash Chopra
On the flip side, Aakash Chopra reckons that Ishant Sharma and Wriddhiman Saha's non-selection implies the end of the road for the duo. He elaborated:
Ishant Sharma and Wriddhiman Saha - I think that's the finale. Both of them played a lot of cricket, played very well but when Kona Bharat and Rishabh Pant get selected and Wriddhiman Saha is not, I think that's it."
Wriddhiman Saha said, "after scoring 61 against NZ in Kanpur, Ganguly told me that I shouldn't worry about anything as long as he is in the BCCI. It boosted my confidence, I failed to understand why everything changed so fast". (To TOI).
The renowned commentator pointed out that Ishant is unlikely to stage a comeback considering India's current seam-bowling depth. Aakash Chopra explained:
"The sort of fast bowling group that is getting ready, I think that's it for Ishant Sharma as well. Both of them have played extremely well, wish you very well. I am not saying they should retire but the Indian team will not look towards them in a hurry. If you might see Pujara and Rahane in a year or so, they will take more time than that."
Aakash Chopra concluded by highlighting his personal equation with Ishant Sharma. The cricketer-turned-commentator was part of the Delhi team when the lanky pacer made his Ranji debut for the side.