Ajinkya Rahane was India's best batter in WTC Final 2023 [Source: Twitter]
Out-of-favour batter, India's Ajinkya Rahane made a terrific comeback in the Test side, during the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) Final 2023, against Australia. In a Test, where others failed Rahane shone scoring 89 and 46, respectively at The Oval, as India suffered a humiliating loss.
As a reward, Rahane, who was dropped back in January 2022, has been appointed India's vice-captain for their upcoming West Indies tour, baffling several former players.
Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly has expressed his reservations over Rahane's appointment as VC for Windies, asking about the process behind it. Speaking to PTI, the former BCCI chief stated that someone like Ravindra Jadeja could have been an ideal option given his experience.
Here's what Ganguly said
"I won't say it's a step backward. You have been out for 18 months, then you play a Test and you become a vice-captain. I don't understand the thought process behind it. There is Ravindra Jadeja, who has been there for a long time and a certainty in Test matches, he is a candidate.
"... but to just come back and straightway become vice-captain after 18 months, I don't understand. My only thing is that selection shouldn't be hot and cold. There has to be continuity and consistency in selection."
Team India selectors have included the likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Navdeep Saini and Mukesh Kumar for the Windies tour, giving Sarfaraz Khan, and Abhimanyu Easwaran a snub, despite scoring a truckload of runs in domestic cricket.
Ganguly, praised Jaiswal's selection while hoping that both Khan and Easwaran also get a chance in the future.
"I feel for Sarfaraz Khan. At some point he should get an opportunity for the amount of runs that he has scored in past three years. And same thing for Abhimanyu Easwaran for the tons of runs he has scored in last five to six years. I am surprised that both of them have been omitted but they should get a chance in future. But Yashasvi Jasiwal is a good selection."
The first Test between India and West Indies starts on July 12, with the second beginning on July 20.
 "Vishal Mehra")
