BCCI allows Cheteshwar Pujara to play county cricket in England
BCCI has given out of form Cheteshwar Pujara the nod to play county cricket after India’s disastrous 1-3 series loss in England. Pujara struggled in the Test series, managing only 222 runs in 5 matches at 22.20.
The 26-year-old known for his classical technique and long innings in whites, struggled against the moving ball and could manage only one fifty in 10 innings.
Pujara is one of the rare Indian cricketers who’s a Test specialist and isn’t a regular in one-day and T20 squads. He sought BCCI’s permission to play county cricket and secretary Sanjay Patel has given a green signal.
“Pujara is not part of the ODI or T20 team now and is free to play. He sought my permission to play in county cricket and I have asked him to send me the details. I have decided to allow him to play,” Patel told PTI.
“We have never said no to any player to play in county cricket if it does not clash with our domestic cricket like Ranji Trophy etc. If you remember we had allowed Gautam Gambhir to play in the English country cricket (in 2013 for Essex),” he added.
Pujara, along with Kohli, was expected to score big in England but both couldn’t muster any big score. Kohli fared even worse, scoring just 134 runs in 5 matches.
While Kohli remains in England to play ODIs, Pujara too could be joining a county soon to spend some valuable time in English domestic cricket.