Cheteshwar Pujara: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Thursday (23rd June) announced the Test squad for the upcoming Test series against West Indies. There were quite a few surprises in the team as the transition began in the team as the veterans were dropped and the youngsters were handed the opportunities.
One of the big names that was dropped from the team was Cheteshwar Pujara. The batter was replaced by young Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad in the team. The veteran batter was under the scanner after his poor outings in the ICC World Test Championship final.
Not only this but since the last one year, Cheteshwar Pujara’s average has been less than 30 in the last one year. But now with him being dropped from the team, the question remains will this be the end of him in the Indian side?
There were quite a few reports in the TOI that suggested that doors are not closed for Cheteshwar Pujara and that if he performs well in the domestic circuit he might get a chance back. The batter will now be a part of the Duleep Trophy and if he manages to perform well, he can eye a comeback.
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But as per the latest reports in Cricbuzz, it is learned that Cheteshwar Pujara has been informed by the BCCI that new players will be given an opportunity. The batter has been piling up a huge amount of runs in the county cricket but hasn’t been able to replicate in the Indian team.
If Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad stood up to the occasion and play well in the West Indies, it’s fair to say that this might be the end of the road for Cheteshwar Pujara. But with the kind of champion player he has been, one cannot write him off.
IND vs WI: Indian squad for the Test series against West Indies
Here’s the Indian squad for the Test series against West Indies
Rohit Sharma (Capt), Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ajinkya Rahane (VC), KS Bharat (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), R Ashwin, R Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jaydev Unadkat, Navdeep Saini.