The cricket teams of India and England are currently playing the first test match of the 5-match series at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad and on the eve of the first test, Rohit Sharma addressed mediapersons and answered many questions.
Though Virat Kohli has pulled out from the first two test matches of the series, the selectors are not in the mood to consider the veteran cricketers Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane for playing in the series. There were speculations that Rajat Patidar would get a chance to play in the first test match as the youngster is in a blazing form.
The last test match that Cheteshwar Pujara played for India was the final of the World Test Championship which India lost to Australia. Though the senior cricketer has performed well in the Ranji Trophy as he scored a double century, still he was not able to find a place in the squad for the England series. As far as Ajinkya Rahane is concerned, he was dropped after the West Indies tour and his performance in the domestic level is also not very good.
When Rohit Sharma is asked whether the doors for Pujara and Rahane have closed forever, Hitman answers that the doors are not closed for anyone, as long as they are fit and scoring runs, they can be welcomed in the Indian team.
However, he further adds that it is also important to give a chance to other players. Explaining his stand, Rohit Sharma says that they don’t want to end up in a position when 7-8 players out of 11 have played only 20-25 test matches between them, so they should get the game time whenever it is possible.
It is also important for the team management to give chance to the youngsters as Rohit Sharma (36 yrs), Ravichandran Ashwin (36 yrs), Ravindra Jadeja (35 yrs) and Virat Kohli (35 yrs) don’t seem to be playing for long now. What do you say?