‘Naam mein hi puja hai…’: Former Indian player praised Cheteshwar Pujara

Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar spoke about Cheteshwar Pujara’s career struggles, saying life on the cricket field was never easy for him. Pujara recently retired from all forms of Indian cricket, though many felt he deserved more chances in Tests after being dropped following the 2023 World Test Championship Final. Despite scoring heavily for Saurashtra in domestic cricket, the selectors decided not to recall him, choosing instead to move on with younger players.

Sanjay Manjrekar said that if Cheteshwar Pujara had gone to England for the recent Test series, he might have even scored a triple century. He felt the English conditions and the level of their bowlers would have suited Pujara’s solid batting style, giving him the chance to play a big innings.

“Had he (Cheteshwar Pujara) gone to England this time around, the kind of bowling attack England had, the pitches that were there in that series, Pujara, even at this stage, would have ended up getting 300,” Manjrekar said on a video he posted on social media.

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“A couple of times, he was dropped from the Indian team, and one comeback that he made was in Sri Lanka, and he had to come back into the playing XI as an opener. And guess what he did? He batted right through the innings. That is Pujara for you, just unbelievable. A very likeable person, no matter what. The career wasn’t easy, and for a defensive batter, the kind of grappling that he did, life was tough for him on the cricket field, but he always had this very pleasant smile on his face,” he added.

Sanjay Manjrekar also tribute Cheteshwar Pujara describing him calm and composed batting and praised his batting style. He also stated ‘Naam mein hi puja hai‘ means there is prayer in the name itself.

“Every time he was out on the cricket field and batting, especially, it seemed like ek lambi puja woh kar raha hai (he is doing a long prayer). It was like he was meditating with the bat in hand. I often called him a monk who likes to bat because it seemed like nothing rattled him,” he added.