OPINION
Follow UsIn his long career filled with ebbs and flows, Pujara has never had to face such an extended lean patch before being dropped from the squad for the Sri Lanka series last March. For the major part of his career, the Saurashtra batter posed a perfect picture of resilience over aesthetics, of determination over finesse.
A match-defining double century against England along with some gutsy knocks against Australia in their backyard, Pujara had enthralled the fans with a masterclass after another but in the last few months, everything seems to have come crashing down.
It seemed the end of his sojourn with the Indian side but like everything else in his career, Cheteshwar Arvind Pujara is turning a new leaf by scoring hundreds of runs for Sussex in the ongoing County Championship.
Despite being at the forefront of India's dominance in Australia in January, Pujara managed to score only 810 runs in 30 innings since 2021 at an average of 27.93 without a hundred, leading to India's batting muddle at the top.
Amidst a lukewarm season and the emergence of Hanuma Vihari, Pujara's worst nightmare came true as he was dropped from the home series against Sri Lanka. To add insult to injury, the veteran batter was not picked by any of the franchises in the mega auction ahead of the Indian Premier League 2022.
While most people would have thrown in the towel and surrendered to their fate of not making a comeback, Pujara vowed to go back to the basics and went through the gruelling games for Saurashtra in the Ranji Trophy before heading for his County stint.
At the ripe age of 34, it is fair to say, Pujara is on the wrong end of the 30s, especially in Indian cricket. With most of the domestic and international stars showcasing their skills in the extravaganza, thousand miles away in the southern hemisphere, Pujara started racking up hundreds of runs away from the glaring eyes of the media.
After being drafted into the side as a replacement for Travis Head, Pujara has scored four successive centuries to highlight his dominance in Country cricket and get back into much-needed form.
While he was dismissed for a single-digit score of six in the first innings on his Sussex debut, the right-handed batter bounced back in a commanding fashion to smash an unbeaten 201 and help the side hold onto a draw against Derbyshire. He followed it up with another century against Worcestershire and a double ton against century against Durham to give the Indian fans plenty to cheer for in the middle of the extravaganza.
In the last game against Middlesex, Pujara continued his sublime form and scored an unbeaten 170 as the side declared the innings on a total of 335 runs.
Time for India to look at their experienced player in alien conditions?
With a combined total of 771 runs in four innings at an average of 143.40, and a strike rate of 61.22, Pujara is the second on the list of leading run-scorers in the County Championship.
While the focus and attention currently has been on the high-voltage IPL, the ardent fans of the sport are eagerly waiting for India's tour to England in July, which will include the fifth Test that was rescheduled due to Covid cases in the Indian contingent.
With Pujara honing his skills in that very land a month prior to the Test, it will be interesting to witness the strategies deployed by the selection committee in finalising the team for the Test match scheduled to be played at Edgbaston.
There is no doubt about the ability of Vihari and the skillset he has showcased in the home series against the Lankans and his heroics against Australia in Sydney. However, given the form Pujara is in currently, it is hard for the team management to look beyond him, especially in England.
We ain't sure of how things will unfold for the 34-year old in the coming months. However, this incredible story of being down and out in the first half of the year to staging a remarkable comeback by Pujara is set to be talked about for a while.
