Cheteshwar Pujara scored a praiseworthy double century in Saurashtra's Ranji Trophy 2023-24 game against Jharkhand, scoring an unbeaten 243 off 356 balls as Saurashtra posted a mammoth 578-run total in the 1st innings after Jharkhand were skittled out for 142 all out.
It was Pujara's 17th double century in first-class cricket, taking him to the fourth spot in the list of the highest run-getters in the Indian domestic circuit, leapfrogging VVS Laxman.
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Pujara's knock comes at the perfect time for the 35-year-old as India are set to host England in a five-match Test series which begins on January 25 - Pujara's birthday - in Hyderabad.
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Will Cheteshwar Pujara be selected for the Tests against England?
Pujara last played a Test for India in June 2023, in the World Test Championship (WTC) Final against Australia, which India lost by 209 runs.
In the 1st innings, Pujara scored just 14 runs off 25 balls. In the 2nd innings, with India chasing a steep target of 444 runs, Pujara managed to scored just 27 runs from 47 balls.
After that Test, Pujara was dropped for the Tests against West Indies in July and the recently-concluded Test series against South Africa.
In his absence, Shubman Gill has been demoted to the No. 3 spot in Tests with left-hander Yashasvi Jaiswal taking the opening slot left vacant by Gill's demotion.
However, Gill has been disappointing in Tests, especially in the No. 3 position. In seven innings, the 24-year-old batsman has scored just 119 runs at an average of a shade under 20 with no half-century or century.
Shubman Gill's stats at No. 3 in Tests:
| Matches | Innings | Runs | Average | S.R. | 50s | 100s | HS |
| 4 | 7 | 119 | 19.83 | 68.00 | 0 | 0 | 36 |
Gill's worrisome form in Tests, coupled with Pujara's return to form and possible national reckoning, could see the Saurashtra batter make a return to the Indian playing XI in Tests, even though his numbers since 2021 will make the selectors skeptical.
Cheteshwar Pujara in Tests since 2021:
| Matches | Innings | Runs | Average | S.R. | 50s | 100s | HS |
| 24 | 44 | 1292 | 31.51 | 38.79 | 10 | 1 | 102* |
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Cheteshwar Pujara's overall Test career stats
Pujara made his Test debut for India in 2010 against Australia at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore. Since then, Pujara has played in 103 Tests, scoring over 7000 runs.
| Matches | Innings | Runs | Average | S.R. | 50s | 100s | HS |
| 103 | 176 | 7195 | 43.61 | 44.37 | 35 | 19 | 206* |
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