Harbhajan Singh Takes A Subtle Jab At Virat Kohli & Others Following Pujara’s Exclusion From WI Tests
Pujara walks back to the pavillion in WTC final (Twitter)
Batting barnacle Cheteshwar Pujara returned with below-par scores of 14 and 27 against Australia at the WTC 2023 final. His lacklustre outing at The Oval extended his dry run with the bat in Tests, and he was subsequently dropped from India’s squad for a two-match series in West Indies.
Former spinner Harbhajan Singh believes that Pujara needs to be treated better by the team management for his contributions towards Indian cricket. The cricketer-turned-commentator also took a subtle dig at other Indian batters who have been struggling to score in Tests off late.
Harbhajan Singh expresses respect for Pujara
Harbhajan Singh has emphasised the importance of Cheteshwar Pujara within the Indian team. The former cricketer described the Rajkot-born player as team’s unsung hero, who makes sure other batters get their comfort by doing all the heavy-lifting himself. While speaking with the PTI, Singh said:
“I have a lot of respect for Chesteshwar Pujara for what he has achieved. He has been an unsung hero of the Indian team for many years now. He has been one of those pillars of strength for India, doing the dirty work of hanging in there, making sure other batters got their comfort.”
“I believe he needs to be given a bit more respect than what he has been given and the way he was chucked out of the team was a surprise for me. Because he isn’t the only one not scoring runs. There are others as well who play in that same team who are scoring runs at same average.”
Harbhajan’s remarks may well have been a subtle dig at other out-of-form batters, including the likes of Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane and to some extent, Rohit Sharma.
Much like Pujara, his batting teammate Kohli has also registered only one Test century since January 2020. While Rahane signalled his return to form at the WTC final, captain Rohit Sharma has registered just one fifty-plus score in Tests in the past year-and-a-half.
Team India will now face West Indies in a two-match Test series in July, which launches their campaign for the WTC 2023-25 cycle. The two teams will then collide in a three-match ODI series, which serves as a testing ground for the ‘Men in Blue’ for the ODI World Cup this year.
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