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Cricket Players'There was question about him being selected': Ex-India opener questions decision to name Rahane captain against NZ
BCCI named Rahane the skipper for the first Test against New Zealand while regular captain Virat Kohli will return to his role from the second Test.
Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra on Saturday questioned the decision to name Ajinkya Rahane the captain for the first Test against New Zealand at home, admitting that his place in the squad was itself a big question ahead of the announcement for the team.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Friday named Rahane the skipper for the first Test only while regular captain Virat Kohli will return to his role from the second Test. Rohit Sharma, who was recently named as the new T20I skipper, was in contention for the captaincy in the first Test, but the veteran has been rested for the entire series.
Although he admitted that he likes Rahane the batsman, but his Test average has gone down hill in the last two years amid a few good knocks, which includes that century in Melbourne last December.
"You have picked Ajinkya Rahane as the captain. But the truth is also that, let's be honest, there was a question about him being selected for the last Test against England if the match had happened," he said on his YouTube channel.
"As much as I like Ajinkya Rahane, the fact is that the average has been seen falling down only. There has been an odd good knock in between for sure but the average has fallen 20 points in the last two years. Rahane's average has never gone so low."
The veteran cricketer feels that though his Lord's half-century saved him from getting dropped, the New Zealand series will be an important one for his career and he will have to score runs to keep his place in the squad.
"If he had not made the half-century at Lord's - the partnership with Pujara in the second innings, it would have been a further point of discussion if you had to find a replacement for Ajju as well. If Rohit Sharma will be the vice-captain and Ajinkya might be put on notice. But at this moment, he has been named the captain," he said.
"It is a very important series for Rahane. He is there as a captain but he will have to score runs because there is pressure. The last one year has been really ordinary from his standards, by any standards actually."
