'Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara’s chapter is closed' - Aakash Chopra sounds alarm bells for veterans' India career

Even after hitting a double-century against Jharkhand in the ongoing Ranji Trophy, veteran batter Cheteshwar Pujara wasn’t considered for selection in the upcoming five-match Test series against England. Ajinkya Rahane, who was named the vice-captain in the series against West Indies, got dropped from the South Africa series and is once again out of contention. Reflecting upon that, former cricketer Aakash Chopra stated that the duo would not be considered in the future as well and their chapter is closed.

Chopra also lauded Pujara for his selfless demeanour. He mentioned that other cricketers score runs for selection, while Pujara bats just to enjoy himself. The 46-year-old called him the ‘saint of cricket’ and added that he will score runs no matter what but doesn’t believe that the cricketer can make a comeback in the national team.

“The squad is along the expected lines. We had expected Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara not to be there. I feel that chapter is closed. If you did not pick them in South Africa, that was the last opportunity to pick them. If you did not pick them there, you are not going back to them,” said Chopra on his YouTube channel.

“Pujara scored a double century last week. He is the saint of cricket. He will keep scoring because he does not score runs only for selection. Half the world scores runs for selection. He plays cricket just because he likes batting. He scores runs because he likes scoring runs. So Pujara will continue to score runs and break all records in first-class cricket. I think he has already scored 61 first-class centuries. He will make 100. He will not stop. He will not retire at all,” he concluded. 

Shubman Gill replaced Pujara at number three in the Test squad but is yet to prove himself in the middle. On the other hand, Shreyas Iyer replaced his Mumbai teammate Rahane at number five, but his consistency remains a concern. Despite so, both cricketers are heavily backed by the team management at the moment.