'Can Rahane or Pujara fill Kohli and Rohit's shoes?' - Aakash Chopra ahead of India's England tour

Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra has questioned whether Ajinkya Rahane or Cheteshwar Pujara should return to the Indian squad for the tour to England. The former opener pointed out that the Indian team will miss Virat Kohli and Rohit Shamra’s presence on the tour.

India will take on England for a five-match Test series where the first game is set to start in Leeds on June 20. With the two veterans having announced their retirement from red-ball format, India will have an inexperienced batting lineup in their first series of the World Test Championship (WTC) cycle 2025-27.

The 47-year-old was interested whether Rahane or Pujara should be considered for the England series. Chopra admitted that the duo could be in consideration to support the team with their experience in English conditions.

"There was another discussion that if Virat Kohli is not going, although it's been heard that someone is trying to convince him, can Ajinkya Rahane or Cheteshwar Pujara return, just for this series?" said Chopra in his YouTube Channel.

"Can the team go in that direction? Can they think from that point of view? I am voicing it because it's the England tour. If it had been any other tour, I would have said 'let's go with kids.' However, if both Kohli and Rohit are not there, maybe you want to think about Pujara or Rahane. Both are playing well and scoring runs," Chopra conceded.

There won't be a place for the seniors: Chopra

The Agra-born cricketer opined that there might not be a place for the senior cricketers to play as the Indian setup already have enough options to showcase in the series. He mentioned that he has doubts with the selectors going in the way to pick the batters.

"I have my serious doubts about the Indian team going in that direction because they have Yashasvi Jaiswal with KL Rahul for opening. Shubman Gill might come at No. 4 because he might eventually like that number," he said.

"Sai Sudharsan could be at No. 3, then Shubman Gill at No. 4, and (potential) vice-captain Rishabh Pant at No. 5. You might think about keeping one among Nitish Kumar Reddy, Karun Nair and Sarfaraz Khan at No. 6. If you start thinking in that direction, there won't be a place. I feel the Indian team might want to go in that direction," he concluded.