On Wednesday Cheteshwar Pujara, while standing as the interim skipper, became the first Sussex batsman to make a double-hundred against Middlesex at the latter’s home venue, The Lord’s, during their County Championship Division 2 match.
Cheteshwar Pujara Registered 3rd Double Century
This was Pujara’s third double century of the ongoing County Championship 2022 season. He had raised his ton – his fifth of the season – on Day 1 of the game and continued to pile up on Day 2, batting for almost nine hours!
Pujara finished his giant effort with 231 runs from 403 balls, in the process stroking 21 fours and 3 sixes. Positioned at number 4 in the line-up, he came in to bat in the 35th over of Sussex’s innings and was the last man to be dismissed, in the 163rd over! Pujara and Tom Alsop’s hundreds helped Sussex put up a massive total of 523.
Pujara is now the third-highest run-scorer of the CC Division 2, 2022 season having amassed 997 runs in only 10 innings at a jaw-dropping average of 124. Ahead him are Shan Masood (1074 runs in 13 innings) and Ben Duckett (1005 runs in 12 innings) and both of them average in the 80s and have played more innings than Pujara.
Pujara has recorded 5 hundreds – three of which he converted into double hundreds and there was another score of 170 against Middlesex earlier in the season.
As Pujara notched up another landmark, Wisden India came up with a telling stat which highlighted Pujara’s blockbuster County season.
“Every time Cheteshwar Pujara has crossed fifty in this year’s County Championship, he has gone on to reach three figures. A staggering season for India batter,” the tweet said.
Here, check out Wisden India’s tweet:
Innings – 10
Runs – 997
Average – 124.62
Double-centuries – 3
HS – 231Every time Cheteshwar Pujara has crossed fifty in this year’s County Championship, he has gone on to reach three figures
A staggering season for India batter
#CountyChampionship #Cricket pic.twitter.com/eZof3GfvNK
— Wisden India (@WisdenIndia) July 21, 2022
It was his thunderous form in the County Championship before the Edgbaston Test between India and England that had gotten Pujara a recall to the Indian squad. And then after both Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul were ruled out of the game, due to covid and groin injury respectively, that Pujara got the chance to open.
While he fell for only 14 in the first innings, Pujara scored a crucial 66 in the second innings and was India’s top scorer in the second innings. However, that all went in vain as England chased down 378 to win the game.
Despite the loss, Pujara’s big contribution and this splendid form in County cricket are likely to keep him in India’s squad for the home Test series against Australia.
Twitterati hailed the 34-year-old senior batsman for his run-charting spree in the County season this year.
There were a few other records which Pujara created during his latest double century.
Pujara becomes the first Sussex player after 118 years to score 3 double hundreds in a single county season.
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) July 20, 2022
Most Career FC double tons
37- Bradman
36- Hammond
22- Hendren
17- Sutcliffe
17- Ramprakash
16- Pujara
16- Fry
16- Hobbs
16- HickIncredible for a modern player to be so high up this list.
— James McCaghrey (@McLovinstatto) July 20, 2022
Pujara becomes the first Indian team player to score a double hundred in Lord’s.
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) July 20, 2022
DYK?
As of now only the following five batsmen have made more 200+ scores than Cheteshwar Pujara (16) in first-class cricket history!
37 – Don Bradman
36 – Walter Hammond
22 – Percy Hendren
17 – Herbert Sutcliffe & Mark Ramprakash— Mohandas Menon (@mohanstatsman) July 20, 2022
Cheteshwar Pujara scored his 16th double century in First Class cricket today, which is the most by an Asian player and the most among all active cricketers.
Here’s a special thread showing a breakdown of all of @cheteshwar1‘s 16 double centuries in FC cricket :-
— Rhitankar Bandyopadhyay (@rhitankar8616) July 20, 2022
