Sunil Gavaskar bashes BCCI for dropping out Cheteshwar Pujara and making him a “Scapegoat”

The omission of Cheteshwar Pujara from India’s squad for the upcoming two-Test series against the West Indies in July has sparked significant discussions. There is speculation that Yashasvi Jaiswal might take over the coveted No.3 position that Pujara has held for the past decade.

However, former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar believes that this presents an opportunity for the selectors to rest several senior players and provide chances to younger talents. He feels that dropping Pujara is an unfair decision, considering India’s overall disappointing batting performance in the World Test Championship final against Australia.

Pujara dropped! Cricket is a great leveler Puji 🤫#INDvWI https://t.co/bVEqDhaIwU pic.twitter.com/PTMdEB8Kue

— On Drive (@Adityaaaaa10) June 23, 2023

Gavaskar, who is highly regarded as one of the most successful opening batsmen in Test cricket history, argues that age should not be a determining factor in the Saurashtra batter’s exclusion. He also emphasizes that Cheteshwar Pujara was not the sole Indian batsman who struggled in the WTC final.

Cheteshwar Pujara scored 14 and 27 runs in the two innings, getting bowled in the first and caught behind while attempting an uncharacteristic uppercut shot in the second. However, Ajinkya Rahane was the only player to surpass 50 runs in the match, and India’s top four batsmen were dismissed for just 71 runs within the initial 20 overs of the first innings.

It has been a fabulous career, he was at the heart of the two great series wins in Australia in 2018/21, but I am not writing a Pujara obit yet. We almost wrote one for Rahane and he was India's best batter in the WTC final. And is now the vice-captain. But yes, the Pujara…

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) June 23, 2023