India batsman Cheteshwar Pujara credits his comeback to Sussex stint

Cheteshwar Pujara. File Pic

Cheteshwar Pujara fully deserved to make a comeback into the India Test team after piling on the runs in red-ball cricket since he was axed for the Sri Lanka series earlier in the year.

After being dropped, many would have assumed that this was the last straw for Pujara at the Test level after a long run of underwhelming form. But the drop seemed to have awakened a hunger to get back to his best, which is exactly what he did on his Ranji return and subsequent County Championship return.

Pujara scored 2 fifties in 3 games for Saurashtra before tearing it up with Sussex in England's premier red-ball competition. Pujara scored an eye-watering 720 runs in 5 games at an average of 120. What better place to prove you credentials in than where the India team are scheduled to play?

According to PTI, Pujara spoke to BCCI TV where he explained what helped him get his rhythm back. He said, "It's about playing as many first-class games as possible and for me, that experience was very important. When you want to get back into form, when you want to find your rhythm, when you have that concentration, it is important to play some long innings."

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"So, when I was playing for Sussex, I could do that. When I had my first big knock against Derby, then I felt that my rhythm was back, my concentration and everything was falling in place. Yeah, I had a very good time with Sussex."

"It was about getting a big score and so when I had that in my first game, I knew that everything is back to normal now. (I was) finding my footwork, the back lift was coming along well," he added.

Ahead of the one-off Test against England, Pujara and the rest of the Indian squad will play a 4-day warm-up game against Leicestershire, starting on the 23rd of June. In order for all the Test team members to gain match practice, Pujara, Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah, and Prasidh Krishna will turn out for Leicestershire and face the Indian side.

(With inputs from PTI)