New Delhi: Former Indian cricketer Robin Uthappa reckoned that senior Indian batter Cheteshwar Pujara can still fit into the Indian team for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy. He backed the likes of Abhimanyu Easwaran and KL Rahul to play the anchor role.
Pujara, a veteran of 103 Test matches for India, has been sidelined from the national team in Tests since India lost in the World Test Championship 2023-25 final against Australia last year in June. He played a vital role in India’s back-to-back victories in Australia by an identical 2-1 margin in the 2018-19 and 2020-21 Border-Gavaskar editions.
Easwaran and Rahul, who have been dubbed as backup openers for captain Rohit Sharma, have repeatedly failed to play impactful knocks in the ongoing two unofficial Test matches against Australia A.
Uthappa, who played 46 ODI and 13 T20I matches for India between 2006 and 2015, said that India will need someone of Pujara’s calibre to play the defensive role.
“KL Rahul and Abhimanyu Easwaran can really play that anchor role, with everyone else revolving around them. Honestly, I still believe there’s space for someone like Pujara in the Test team,” Uthappa told during a media interaction organised by JioCinema & Sports18.
“We need someone defensive, someone who can play conventional, traditional Test cricket. As of now, KL Rahul and Abhimanyu Easwaran are the ones who can play that role.”
“I don’t see anyone else who can take on that responsibility. Everyone likes to play positively, aggressively, and score runs at a quick pace, including someone like Shubman Gill. He is a natural stroke-player, and if you ask him to play that slow role, he may not enjoy it. You might be taking away his game,” Uthappa added.
Pujara last month scored his 18th double-century in first-class cricket. He made 234 in a Ranji Trophy match against Chattisgarh as Saurashtra enforced a draw in a run-feast match.
Can KL Rahul make a comeback in Tests?
KL Rahul was left out of the Indian team for the second and third Test matches against New Zealand played in Pune and Mumbai, respectively. The Karnataka player made 0 and 12 in the first Test at his home ground M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
His twin failures contrasted with youngster Sarfaraz Khan’s scintillating ton in the second innings which helped the hosts to overturn the 356-run lead imposed by the Black Caps. After Shubman Gill was declared fit to play in the second Test, the axe came on Rahul to make way for the Punjab youngster. Sarfaraz continued in the team for the next two games, though the sensational player from Mumbai only made 21 runs in the four innings in what was an overall abysmal batting display by India.
Rahul could be considered for the opener’s role given his experience of playing in the position before in Australia if Rohit, as suggested by reports, happens to miss the first Test in Perth.
Former Indian cricketer Robin Uthappa reckoned that senior Indian batter Cheteshwar Pujara can still fit into the Indian team for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy. He backed the likes of Abhimanyu Easwaran and KL Rahul to play the anchor role. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
