Sussex re-signs Cheteshwar Pujara for 2024 County Championship season and One-Day Cup
English county team Sussex on Wednesday (December 14) announced that they have resigned Cheteshwar Pujara for the 2024 County Championship season and the One-Day Cup tournament.
Pujara’s retention comes on the back of excellent performances for the cricket club over the last few years.
In the 2023 season, the right-handed batter amassed 649 runs in eight first-class matches at an average of 54.08, including three centuries and two fifties. As captain, he led Sussex to three wins as they finished in the top three in County Championship Division Two.
The cricket club shared a post on X (formerly Twitter) to announce the development.
“We are delighted to announce the re-signing of India Test batter, Cheteshwar Pujara and Australian batter, Daniel Hughes as overseas signings for the 2024 season.”
Back in 2022, Pujara had raked 1094 runs in eight games at an average of 109.40, including five centuries.
Pujara, however, was recently ruled out of the two-Test series in West Indies earlier this year. The 35-year-old also failed to find a place in India's squad for the upcoming two Tests in South Africa.
The Saurashtra-born cricketer played his last Test during the 2023 World Test Championship (WTC) final, where he scored 14 and 27 in the two innings, respectively. India lost the game to Australia by 209 runs. Back then, former India captain Sunil Gavaskar said that Pujara was made scapegoat despite the likes of Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, and Virat Kohli also failing to deliver in the final.
Gavaskar told India Today:
"Clearly, only one man has been singled out while others also failed. To me, the batting failed. Why is he [Cheteshwar Pujara] dropped then? Why is he being made the scapegoat for our batting failures? He has been a servant of Indian cricket, a loyal servant. Because he doesn’t have millions of followers on whatever platforms who would make a noise in case he gets dropped?"
Overall, Pujara has represented India in 103 Tests, scoring 7195 runs at an average of 43.60, including 19 tons and 35 half-centuries.
Harbhajan Singh unhappy with selectors for ignoring Cheteshwar Pujara for India tour of South Africa
Former India cricketer Harbhajan Singh recently expressed his disappointment with the selection committee for dropping Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, and Umesh Yadav. He said on his YouTube channel:
"South Africa tour is not easy. It’s tough for batters. here you won’t have Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane. Youth are indeed getting opportunities. It’s a good thing. But I don’t think that selectors had a chat with Rahane, Pujara, or Umesh Yadav because whenever Yadav has played in Tests, he has performed."
He added:
"I think the road is tough for a comeback (for these three players). However, they have served Indian cricket, and are renowned cricketers. The board should have had a chat with them. They should have been informed why they are not picked and what is a possible path for them in their careers."
The first Test between India and South Africa will be played in Centurion, starting December 26.