Ajinkya Rahane taking a dig at Cheteshwar Pujara? Batter drops 'easy money' remark on becoming expert
Published - 17 Feb 2025, 12:03 PM | Updated - 17 Feb 2025, 11:34 PM
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The 36-year-old India National Cricket Team batter Ajinkya Rahane has opened up on not taking the role of the expert after being removed from the Indian Test setup.
Ajinkya Rahane revealed that he received a lucrative offer to become an expert but he denied it as he still wants to focus on playing cricket and extending his career.
Cheteshwar Pujara served as cricket expert in BGT 2024-25
Ajinkya Rahane's former teammate and one of the modern-day greats, Cheteshwar Pujara, took over the role of expert in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25.
Pujara was seen doing commentary and providing expert opinion on Star Sports and fans enjoyed the insights given by the Saurashtra superstar.
The careers of Pujara and Rahane have mostly remained parallel to each other as the duo were dropped from the Test team together, and they even received a recall together.
Cheteshwar Pujara last played Test cricket for India in the final of the ICC World Test Championship 2023 against Australia and Rahane also featured in that match. Pujara was dropped from the squad after India failed to capture the WTC mace, and Rahane was given one more series against West Indies before being dropped.
Both the players, since then, have been performing quite well in domestic cricket and are eyeing a comeback to the Test team for the upcoming England tour.
I got an offer to become an expert - Ajinkya Rahane
With Cheteshwar Pujara doing expert duties during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25, many were left wondering why Rahane didn't do the same.
Now, Ajinkya Rahane has finally opened up on the matter in an interview with the Indian Express. He said that doing the job of an expert would have given him easy money, but he wants to keep playing cricket at the moment. He stated:
"I got an offer to become an expert. It was easy and good money but within me, a person is saying I still can (play).
"Getting picked or not is not in my hands. Down the line, I don’t want a situation where I feel that yeh expert assignment mein baad mein bhi le sakta tha. I could have given one last push."
When told that Indian cricket has moved on from him, Rahane said that he still can give his best for his country. He said:
"If you ask me, I can still give my best and my intentions are good. For me, it’s all about the country."
I felt bad because I have been serving for so long - Ajinkya Rahane
Ajinkya Rahane also said that he has the fire and passion to play Test cricket, and it keeps him motivated to grind hard in domestic cricket. He said:
"Test cricket. There is still fire and passion in me. I’m playing Ranji Trophy at the moment, trying to give my all to the Mumbai team. The goal is clear to make another comeback. When I was dropped a few years ago, I made runs and was picked for the World Test Championship final and then was dropped again. But what is in my control? To play."
Rahane further admitted that he felt bad after being dropped from the Test team without being given proper opportunities on the back of his recall to the side. He stated in the same interview:
"I did well in domestic cricket and in the IPL and was called again. Whenever an experienced player makes a comeback, one knows that he will get 2-3 series. I knew that South Africa was a challenging series and I was expecting a call, but I wasn’t picked. I felt bad because I have been serving for so long."
