'That's why he had lost his place' - Dinesh Karthik after Ajinkya Rahane's quiet series against West Indies

India won the Test series against West Indies by 1-0 after the fifth day of the second Test at Queen's Park Oval, Port of Spain, Trinidad got washed out. There were a lot of positives for India in the two games with Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal among the runs while Ravichandran Ashwin and Mohammed Siraj among the wickets.

However, two big names from India namely Shubman Gill and vice captain Ajinkya Rahane had a quiet series as the duo could only score 45 runs and 11 runs from the two Tests. Commenting on Rahane’s failure, India wicketkeeper batter Dinesh Karthik said that he has been inconsistent throughout his career and hence lost his place in the team in 2022.

“Rahane obviously had a very ordinary series. He had really got the WTC final, hence was picked and also named as vice-captain for this series - a few surprises there. He got two opportunities with the bat and on both occasions he was found wanting. The thing with Rahane over a period of time has been that critical word: consistency. That's why he had lost his place in the side. He would know, he did not make the series count," Karthik said on Cricbuzz.

Further speaking about Gill, Karthik said that the young batting sensation has proven himself in ODIs and T20I, hence the fans need to be patient with him in the longest format of the game.

“Shubman Gill, we expect the world from him and just like in T20s, he's starting out slowly in Tests. If you look at his scores in Test cricket in the recent past, nothing really to take home. He has really made a mark in ODI cricket and T20s. Now for him to make it big in Test cricket, he has the skill, he has the potential what he needs is a little more patience from our side. He does look apart when he plays well," he added.

Notably, both Gill and Rahane had come into the series in top form. The former had finished as the highest run-scorer of IPL 2023 with 890 runs at an average of 59.33 in 17 innings while Rahane was India’s best performer in the World Test Championship final 2023 with scores of 89 and 46 after an impressive IPL season for eventual champions Chennai Super Kings. India's next Test assignment is in December against South Africa which could well prove to be Rahane’s last chance to prove himself if he gets selected for the away series.