# Rahane names all-time India Test XI, leaves out Kohli, Rohit, Bumrah 2026-10-25T02:47:00+00:00 | Sports | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 2 independent outlets (3 source reports) Former India batter Ajinkya Rahane, 38, has named his all-time India Test XI comprising only players he has played alongside, leaving out Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah. Rahane included himself at number five and named MS Dhoni as captain and wicketkeeper, explaining that Dhoni was his first captain in international cricket. The Times of India reports Rahane retired from all cricket in July 2026. Rahane's XI features openers Murali Vijay and Shikhar Dhawan, followed by Rahul Dravid at three, Sachin Tendulkar at four, Rahane at five, and Dhoni at six. Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin are the spin-bowling all-rounders, while Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma and Bhuvneshwar Kumar make up the pace attack. Times Now reports that Rahane has faced backlash on social media for the omissions. Yahoo Sports also covered the story. Update, 25 October 2026: Yahoo Sports now also reports the story, confirming the same XI and omissions. Times Now adds that Rahane has faced backlash on social media for the omissions, a detail not in the earlier Times of India report. ## Indian Opinion Analysis Times of India and Yahoo Sports offer neutral straight reporting of Rahane's XI and the omissions. Times Now frames the story as a backlash, leading with the social media criticism and calling Kohli, Rohit and Bumrah 'the cornerstones' of recent overseas wins. The disagreement is one of emphasis: the neutral versions report the omission as a fact, the critical version foregrounds public disapproval. The balanced reading is that Rahane picked a XI from the players he had shared a dressing room with, which logically excludes the three, but Times Now highlights the fallout rather than the rationale. ## Coverage Coverage: 3 sources, 2 neutral, 1 sensationalist - timesofindia.indiatimes.com (neutral report) Straight news report, no comment or criticism - timesnownews.com (sensationalist) Leads with 'faces heat', frames omissions as controversial - yahoo.com (neutral report) Wire-style report, no added framing or opinion This brief was synthesised by AI from the 3 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Tags: Ajinkya Rahane, MS Dhoni, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/rahane-picks-all-time-india-test-xi-leaves-out-kohli-and-rohit/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/rahane-picks-all-time-india-test-xi-leaves-out-kohli-and-rohit/#story-in-brief How this brief was made: an AI model read the reports linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. Stance labels are editorial classifications of how each outlet framed this story, assigned by the same model, not ratings of the outlets. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/