Returning to the County Championship after being away for a while to play the Edgbaston Test at the start of this month, there hasn’t been any change in the run-scoring spree of Cheteshwar Pujara who slammed a double hundred at Lord’s this week.
Given the responsibility of being the stand-in skipper for Sussex in the CC Division 2 game against Middlesex, Pujara recorded his fifth century of the season and converted it into his third double ton; he also has a score of 170* against Middlesex.
Standing at the crease for a marathon time of 533 minutes, Pujara finished with 231 runs from 403 balls, in the process stroking 21 fours and 3 sixes. Batting at number 4, he came 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.
Cheteshwar Pujara continues his surreal County form
Pujara now is 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.
It was Pujara’s splendid form in the County Championship before the Edgbaston Test between India and England that had got him a call-up 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, he 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 surreal form in County cricket are likely to keep him in India’s squad for the home Test series against Australia.
Fans were in awe but not totally surprised by Cheteshwar Pujara’s hunger for scoring big runs.
Here are some of the tweets marvelling at Pujara’s stunning County form:
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
Double hundred for Sussex captain Cheteshwar Pujara.
— Abhishek Mukherjee (@ovshake42) July 20, 2022
Cheteshwar Pujara scored 231 in 403 balls for Sussex. Yet another dominating display by Pujara in the County Championship, it was his 3rd double hundred this season out of the 7 games. pic.twitter.com/CulkCQ7Wfy
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) July 20, 2022
Pujara becomes the first Indian team player to score a double hundred in Lord’s.
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) July 20, 2022
Well played, Captain Pujara – 231 runs from 403 balls including 21 fours and 3 sixes – he batted for 533 minutes against bowling unit if Umesh Yadav, Tim Murtagh & co. pic.twitter.com/ZdcXvRpfB2
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) July 20, 2022
Another county hundred for Pujara. 100* off 144.
His recent matches before this one: pic.twitter.com/LJdiHojjkU
— Himanish Ganjoo (@hganjoo153) July 19, 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
Pujara doing what he does best, scoring runs.
@cheteshwar1
— Sussex Cricket (@SussexCCC) July 19, 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
A complete list of players with three or more first-class 200s for @SussexCCC in the same season:
Cheteshwar Pujara, 2022
CB Fry, 1904
CB Fry, 1901
KS Ranjitsinhji, 1901
KS Ranjitsinhji, 1900— Xavier Voigt-Hill (@voigthill) July 20, 2022
Indians to score centuries at Lord’s in County Championship :-
Abdul Kardar for Warwickshire, 1950
Kapil Dev for Worcestershire, 1985
Md Azharuddin for Derbyshire, 1991
Piyush Chawla for Somerset, 2013
Cheteshwar Pujara for Sussex, today#LVCountyChamp— Rhitankar Bandyopadhyay (@rhitankar8616) July 19, 2022
