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'Rahane, Ishant have been ageing. Get the youth in': Former Australia player's bold take on senior duo's Test future
India, led by all-format captain Rohit Sharma, will be playing at full strength in the crucial Test match in England in July, beginning July 1 at Edgbaston, Birmingham
While red-ball specialist Cheteshwar Pujara returned to the Indian team for the one-off Test against England in July, seasoned batter Ajinkya Rahane missed out owing to a hamstring injury, which even ruled him out of the recently-concluded Indian Premier League (IPL). Rahane, who was out of the Indian team after the Test series loss in South Africa, amassed just 133 runs in seven games for Kolkata Knight Riders.
India, led by all-format captain Rohit Sharma, will be playing at full strength in the crucial Test match in England. But Rahane's return to the Test fold remains unclear as he the batter said he needs ‘6-8 weeks’ to recover fully from the injury. Along with Rahane, seasoned paceman Ishan Sharma was also absent from the travelling 17-member Test contingent.
With questions looming over the pair's Test future, Brad Hogg believes the selectors should now offer more chances to young players. The former Australia tweaker also backed Rahane and Ishant's oust for the England assignment.
"I think it's great that the selectors have dropped Rahane and Ishant Sharma from the Test team. They have been ageing and haven't been performing of late. You need to get the youth in and rotate them so that they get to experience alongside those who are already experienced," said Hogg on his YouTube channel.
Hogg further heaped praise on Shreyas Iyer, saying the current Kolkata Knight Riders skipper will flourish by batting alongside Virat Kohli in the red-ball format. He also underlined Prasidh Krishna's entry to the fast-bowling camp, which comprises the likes of Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami.
"Iyer is going to spend a number of years batting alongside Kohli, learning the game for the longer form and being able to develop a game plan where he is going to succeed. And then you've got Krishna, who will be coming up alongside Bumrah and Shami. So that is a good policy to rotate the players," Hogg elaborated.
"With this Indian team going to England, bowling will be their strength. They will have Bumrah and Shami in the XI, but I would like to see Krishna too with his extra height and Siraj with his pace and a bit of movement. The only reason I have got Jadeja there is his batting depth."
India and England will be attempting to complete their unfinished five-match series, which India lead 2-1. The series last year was postponed following Covid-19 cases in the Indian camp.
