Virat Kohli withdrew himself from the first two Test matches against England citing personal reasons.
New Delhi: India can fill the void of Virat Kohli with Cheteshwar Pujara for the five-match Test series against England, feels former cricketer Aakash Chopra. Kohli on Monday withdrew himself from the first two Tests against the English side citing personal reasons. On the other hand, Pujara, despite his double hundred in the Ranji Trophy, failed to find a place in the Indian Test team against England. The first Test match between India and England starts on January 25 in Hyderabad.
Kohli was last seen in the two-match Test series against South Africa, where the former India skipper managed 172 runs. India drew the series 1-1. The BCCI is yet to announce a replacement for Kohli. Speaking on his Youtube channel, Chopra called Pujara ‘monk of Indian cricket and explained why the veteran is the perfect replacement for Kohli against England.
“Cheteshwar Pujara – only four Indians have scored more than 20000 first-class runs. He scored a double century recently. Form is with him and he has a proven Test record. He works hard by playing county cricket as well. He is your sincere cricketer. In fact, I say he is Indian cricket’s monk,” said Chopra.
The last time Pujara played for India in Tests was in the World Test Championship final against Australia in June at Lord’s. Despite being ignored by the Indian selectors, Pujara continued his golden run with the bat at the County Championships and then at Ranji Trophy.
Recently, Pujara became the fourth Indian batter after Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sunil Gavaskar to amass 20,000 runs in first-class cricket. Besides, Pujara has a good track record against England in Tests, especially at home. In 27 Tests overall, Pujara has scored 1778 runs that included five tons with a double ton to his name.
Out of the 27 Tests, Pujara played 13 on home soil, amassing 972 runs with four hundreds. His career-best of 206 not out came in 2012 in Ahmedabad. In India, Pujara has played 103 Test matchs while accumulating 7195 runs at an average of 44.36 that consists of 35 fifties and 19 hundreds.
Chopra questioned whether the BCCI selectors are looking at Pujara as an option? “So you can pick him. However, I feel India are not looking in that direction. They have already started looking in a different direction. Cheteshwar Pujara is a legit option but are the Indian selectors looking at him as an option at all? That’s the question we need to ask and wonder,” added the cricketer-turned-commentator.
Earlier, BCCI stated that Kohli had informed captain Rohit Sharma and the Indian team management about his decision. “Mr. Virat Kohli has requested the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to be withdrawn from the first two Tests against England, citing personal reasons,” it added.
“Virat has spoken to Captain Rohit Sharma, the team management and the selectors and has emphasized that while representing the country has always been his top priority, certain personal situations demand his presence and undivided attention,”