Ranji Trophy 2024: Ajinkya Rahane Trolled After Series Of Low Scores Following 'No Rest Days' Post; Cheteshwar Pujara Hailed For Stellar Performance

India cricketer and Mumbai Ranji team skipper Ajinkya Rahane got brutally trolled on social media after his series of low scores in the domestic competition with fans highlighting his post from recent time which was captioned 'No Rest Days' in which he was seen practicing in the nets. Rahane along with Cheteshwar Pujara was ignored for selection of the Test team in the series against South Africa away from home and for the ongoing home series against England.

ALSO READ - Team India For Last 3 Tests Against England Announced; No Virat Kohli But KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja Makes Comeback

On the other hand, another player who has been dropped from the Indian Test team, Cheteshwar Pujara received a lot of praise online for his stellar performances in recent times in the domestic competition. As the Indian batting lineup struggled against South Africa in the recent series away from home, both batters posted some videos from their training sessions which caught the attention of many fans. However, for Rahane it has come back to haunt him whereas for Pujara a lot of people have backed him for selection once again in the Indian Test squad. (Umesh Yadav Reacts After Being Ignored By BCCI For India vs England Last 3 Tests)

Checkout the reactions here:

Ajinkya Rahane's scores after the "No Rest Days" post following India's loss:

0, 0, 16, 8, 9, 1 pic.twitter.com/a1EnNp0OSX

 Vipin Tiwari (@Vipintiwari952_) February 9, 2024

For Rahane.. No rest days  Amit Singh (@amit12_tweet) February 10, 2024

By the way, Pujara and Rahane are playing Ranji Trophy.   (@NewGodOfCricket) February 10, 2024

Ajinkya Rahane is struggling to score runs in First Class cricket. As fine as a player he has been for Mumbai and India, his run famine is visible. His next big innings could be the next one or a while away. How do the Mumbai selectors deal with it? Reputation vs Reality.  shishir hattangadi (@shishhattangadi) February 10, 2024

Cheteshwar Pujara's Performance In Ranji Trophy 2024 :-

 243*(356), 49(100), 43(77), 43(105), 66(137), 91(133), 3(16), 0(6), 110(230).

 What a Player, Cheteshwar Pujara...... pic.twitter.com/oaGZtWD9sv  Jay Cricket. (@Jay_Cricket18) February 10, 2024

The Saurashtra Cricket Association (SCA) will felicitate both Jadeja and Pujara on the day new name of the stadium will be unveiled
 News18#RavindraJadeja #CheteshwarPujara pic.twitter.com/bKt9sEBbLt  Jayesh Kumar (@jayeshkumar2911) February 10, 2024

India's unavailable/not selected 11 for Test match against England

Prithvi Shaw
Mayank Agrawal
Cheteshwar Pujara
Virat Kohli (C)
Ajinkya Rahane
Rishabh Pant (WK)
Shardul Thakur
MD. Shami
T. Natrajan
Y. Chahal
Ravi Bishnoi  Weird Cricket Teams (@narayan46323) February 10, 2024

Another batter who has failed to catch the attention of selectors is Hanuman Vihari. India batter Hanuma Vihari is eying a Test comeback by capping off the Ranji Trophy season on a strong note.

Vihari's rich vein of form has contributed to Andhra Pradesh's run in the Elite Group B. Andhra currently sits in second spot with three wins in five games. ('What A Comeback,' Fans React As Prithvi Shaw Announces Ranji Trophy Return With A Century For Mumbai)

The 30-year-old batter has helped his team, scoring 365 runs in seven innings, and sits behind only skipper Ricky Bhui's tally of 550 runs for the team. His recent scores have allowed him to keep his average in domestic cricket above 50.

Vihari has found it hard to make a spot for himself in India's playing XI but he is keen to leave his mark in domestic cricket and extend his 16 Test appearances.

"I do feel sad and disappointed that I am not in the Test team, but everyone goes through ups and downs, and my job now is to score runs in the Ranji Trophy. The season has gone all right, both for the team and for me. So the ambition is to score a lot of runs and try to return to the Test team," Vihari told ESPNcricinfo after Andhra beat Bihar.

Vihari arguably produced one of the most celebrated knocks in 2021 in Indian Test history. His 23* of 161 deliveries in Sydney against Australia turned out to be a match-saving knock for the Indian team. But since then he has been missing from the action and he indicated that it is likely that as of now he isn't on the radar of selectors.

"No one has spoken to me recently, but Rahul Dravid did speak to me after my last Test, and he told me what I can improve on, but no, I haven't been in touch with anyone since then," Vihari said.

Vihari made his last Test appearance in 2022 at Edgbaston and scored 22 and 11. Now he is focused on improving and enjoying his game.

"But I only think about improving my game and enjoying it. If I don't do that, there is no purpose left. When I go into the middle, I just want to do my best for the team and score runs. I am at a stage [in my career] where I have no expectations. I give my best each time I bat and then whatever happens will happen," Vihari added. (With ANI inputs)