Cheteshwar Pujara fails to sparkle in first innings on Derbyshire debut

Cheteshwar Pujara

India’s current No.3 Test batsman Cheteshwar Pujara started off his brief County stint with Derbyshire on an inauspicious note as he was dismissed for just 7 in their four-day Division Two encounter against Glamorgan on Wednesday.

Glamorgan, after winning the toss and choosing to bat first, had racked up a total of 282 on the board. In reply, Derbyshire were skittled out for a meagre 203, thereby conceding a lead of 79 runs at the end of the 1st innings.

Pujara, who came in at No.4 for Derbyshire, seemed in good touch and hit a sumptuous boundary early on in his innings but couldn’t add too much more to his tally as he was dismissed leg before wicket by Glamorgan all-rounder Jim Allenby shortly after, restricting his stay at the crease to a mere 26 deliveries. Derbyshire have just 2 more matches left in the season after this one, and Pujara will undoubtedly be looking to make a mark before returning back to India.

He had a difficult time in the recent 3-1 Test series loss to England as he scored just 222 runs from 5 Tests at an average of 22.20, prompting him to find a county. He aims to play the remaining four-day matches this season in order to get acclimatized to the unique conditions on offer in England and improve as a cricketer.

Pujara, himself, sets high standards as a cricketer, and what has made his task doubly harder is the fact that he has also been entrusted with the task of replacing modern West Indian great Shivnarine Chanderpaul as Derbyshire’s overseas recruit.

Meanwhile, Indian fast bowler Varun Aaron, who has signed for Durham for the remainder of the season in place of Australian John Hastings, will be joining up with his new team-mates for the rest of their games very soon, which is good to see considering the antipathy of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) towards County Cricket in recent years.