IND vs NZ | Ajinkya Rahane is on thin ice, believes Aakash Chopra

After beating New Zealand with a clean sweep in the T20I series, India will look forward to replicate their performance in the Test series starting from November 25 at Kanpur. Some of the senior members in the squad will be taking a rest for the series and Ajinkya Rahane will lead the team in the first Test. 

Rahane has played 40 Test matches and has scored seven half-centuries and three tons since 2019. He also captained the India side in the Test against Australia in Australia earlier this year. Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra believes that Rahane is on thin ice and the Test series against New Zealand will be extremely important for him to retain his spot in the side for a long time.

"It is an important series for him. He is the captain (for the first Test) but, according to me, he is on thin ice. There is no doubt that he is a good captain. He was the leader when India won in Australia and he also scored a hundred in Melbourne. However, after that, his numbers slid. There has been an odd good performance here and there, but he has not had that big series. That has been the pattern of his entire career," he said on his Youtube channel.

Rahane has played 78 Test matches and has scored 4756 runs with an average of 39.63. Chopra feels that the inconsistency by Rahane has caused him trouble throughout his Test career.

“Even after 70-odd Tests, his place in the team is under the scanner despite him being the vice-captain. The main problem with him is his consistency. Even in the Australia series, apart from the hundred, there was no meaningful score. In the home series against England as well, he had a good score. The story was the same when India went to England as he got that one fifty at Lord’s. He hasn’t scored 500 runs in a Test series yet, which should have happened by now," he opined.