Ajinkya Rahane will not be dropped for the second India-New Zealand Test in Mumbai, according to Dinesh Karthik, as Shreyas Iyer cannot be dropped after his dream Test debut, and a break might help the stand-in captain.
The poor performance of Rahane at Green Park, where he scored 35 and 4 in the two innings, has come under heavy criticism from fans and experts. As Iyer hit a century in the first innings and a half-century in the second, the pressure mounted on him. On a Cricbuzz show, Karthik jokingly remarked that Rahane has been out of form for a long time and that he “won’t be a thing” if he is left out. As Shreyas Iyer comes in and does well, Rahane might be dropped. Rahane was dropped during a tour to South Africa but came back again the next day. There’s no harm in Rahane being dropped for a game. It has been quite a long time since Rahane has not been among the runs in a Test match. It won’t really be a bad thing to drop him. It will ease some of the pressure,” Karthik explained.
On December 3, the second and final game will begin. Virat Kohli, who had opted out of the T20I series and the first Test, will return. It remains to be seen whether things turn out to be better this time for team India.
