Indian cricketer Cheteshwar Pujara is currently preparing for the upcoming Duleep Trophy, following his recent exclusion from the national team for the upcoming two Tests against West Indies next month.
In a recent Instagram post, the right-handed batter can be seen practicing his shots, accompanied by cricket and heart emojis in the caption. This post comes just a day after Pujara was dropped from the Indian team for the WI Tests, due to his lackluster performance with the bat in the 2023 ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final in England.
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Despite scoring three tons for Sussex in the County Championship division two, the 35-year-old cricketer only managed to score 14 and 27 runs in the WTC final against Australia, which ultimately led to India’s defeat by a margin of 209 runs.
According to The Times of India, the selectors are considering giving opportunities to young talents such as Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad in the upcoming championship cycle (2023-25). However, it is worth noting that Pujara has not been completely ruled out for future Tests.
“If [Pujara] scores runs in domestic cricket, the doors are not closed on him, and that has been communicated to him,” a source told TOI.
Former India cricket captain, Sunil Gavaskar, has expressed his disappointment with the selectors’ decision to drop Cheteshwar Pujara for the upcoming West Indies Tests. The 73-year-old cricket legend has criticized the entire batting unit, except for Ajinkya Rahane, for their lackluster performance in the World Test Championship final.
“Why is he being made the scapegoat for our batting failures? Because he doesn’t have millions of followers on whatever platforms who would make a noise in case he gets dropped? What is the criteria for dropping him and keeping the others who failed?,” he told India Today.
In addition to Pujara, the highly-regarded captain Rohit Sharma (who scored 15 and 43), Virat Kohli (who scored 14 and 49), and Shubman Gill (who scored 13 and 18) also struggled to perform in the WTC final. Despite their lackluster performance, the trio managed to maintain their positions in the Test squad.
On the other hand, Pujara is set to participate in the upcoming Duleep Trophy for West Zone, which is scheduled to begin on July 5. The team will face off against the victors of East Zone and Central in the semifinals at Alur.
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