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Cricket Players'Pujara scored a lot in County but the truth is...': Ex-India opener's scathing attack on India star ahead of WTC Final
Cheteshwar Pujara had a successful stint with Sussex this year before joining the Indian team for the WTC Final against Australia.
Team India will take on Australia in the star-studded final of the World Test Championship, which begins on Wednesday at The Oval. Rohit Sharma's men will be aiming at ending their 10-year title drought in ICC events; the side had last lifted an ICC title in the 2013 Champions Trophy. In the inaugural edition of the WTC, a Virat Kohli-led side had reached the final of the tournament where it faced a disappointing loss to New Zealand.
The Indian players will make a return to Test format after over three months in the final this year; all players in the squad bar Cheteshwar Pujara took part in the 2023 edition of the Indian Premier League, which concluded last month. Pujara, meanwhile, represented Sussex in the County Championships and also led the side, but former India opener Aakash Chopra believes that even as Pujara scored big runs for the County side, his performances for India inspire little confidence.
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“Pujara has scored a lot of runs in county cricket. In fact, because of that only he made a comeback into the Indian team, but the truth is that he has probably played only one match fewer than Kohli but his numbers are not flattering at all,” Chopra said as he previewed the final.
"His (Pujara's) average is less than 30. It is either 26 or 29. His and Rahane's averages are almost equal. One has 26 and the other has 29. They have played a lot of matches, have struck a century apiece as well but the average on England grounds over a period of time is below 30, which is not great," Chopra further said.
Pujara has scored 829 runs in England at an average of 29.60 (15 Tests), with a century to his name. In the ongoing WTC cycle, Pujara has the most runs for India, however. Having played in 16 Tests for the side, Pujara has scored 887 runs, albeit with an indifferent average of 32.85.
