Cheteshwar Pujara retires: ‘The Rock’ of Indian cricket who stood firm like ‘The Wall’

Cheteshwar Pujara retires from International cricket: Career highlights of India’s ‘Rock’ who carried forward The Wall’s legacy.

In this modern era of T20 leagues and raining fours and sixes, Cheteshwar Pujara is a curiosity to the kids. For the fans of the game in the last three years, Pujara doesn’t hold a significant place. But for the spectators, who watched India’s two dominating Border-Gavaskar victories during the 2018/19 and 2020/21 trips, they know the winning code. It was none other than Rajkot-born, who stuck to his philosophy of grind and grit. 

India’s long-time number three in Tests, who tried to fill Rahul Dravid’s shoes, has called it a day. Pujara finished as the eighth highest run-getter of the longest format with 7195 runs in 176 innings at an average of 43.60. The right-handed batter celebrated 19 centuries and 35 half-centuries at the best score of unbeaten 206 runs. He ended just ahead of Dilip Vengsarkar and behind Sourav Ganguly. 

Cheteshwar Pujara shares emotional message on international retirement 
Pujara, who last played for India in June 2023 in the WTC final against Australia, made his retirement announcement on his social media handles. He joins the list of top India players who have hung up their shoes from the red-ball format in the last year. This include Ravichandran Ashwin, Virat Kohli, and Rohit Sharma from India’s successful Test side. 

“Wearing the Indian jersey, singing the anthem, and trying my best each time I stepped on the field – it’s impossible to put into words what it truly meant. But as they say, all good things must come to an end, and with immense gratitude, I have decided to retire from all forms of Indian cricket.” The 37-year-old wrote in a note on his social media account. 

He made his first-class debut for Saurashtra in December 2005 and played for them at the start of this year. Pujara made his red-ball debut against Australia in Bengaluru in late 2010 and was part of two away Test series victories down under. 

“As a little boy from the small town of Rajkot, along with my parents, I set out to aim for the stars and dreamt of being a part of the Indian cricket team. Little did I know then that this game would give me so many invaluable opportunities, experiences, purpose, love, and above all, a chance to represent my state and this great nation.” The experienced campaigner penned down in the emotional note. 

“I would like to thank the BCCI and Saurashtra Cricket Association for the opportunity and support throughout my cricket career. I am equally grateful to all the teams, franchises, and counties I have been able to represent over the years.” Pujara added. 

During the recent Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025, he worked as the cricket pundit for multiple networks. 

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Cheteshwar Pujara- India’s stable number three in Tests for crisis situations 
Since his debut, Cheteshwar Pujara has been the second leading Test run-getter at number three. His 6529 runs in 155 Test innings are only behind Kane Williamson (8658) at an average of 44.41 for 18 centuries. When it comes to red-ball encounters away from home at number three in the same period, Pujara has clubbed 2999 runs in 81 innings. He is still second on this list at an average of 38.44 for eight centuries. 

The five-year period between 2016 and 2020 was crucial for India’s Test success. And Pujara played a huge role in that. The Saurashtra batter is the fourth-highest run-getter (3483) from the start of 2016 to the end of 2020 in 76 innings at an average of 47.71. The right-handed batter celebrated 11 centuries and 18 fifties in this period, with the best score of 202. 

One of his best skills with the bat was spending time in the middle. In those five years, Pujara faced 7963 deliveries in 76 Test innings, which is just behind 8437 balls of Joe Root. Out of those, 3858 balls came away from home. That was so important to get the shine off the new ball and tire the bowlers to make it easy for the middle order. 

The veteran is still the only India batter to face over 500 balls in a Test innings. He achieved the feat against Australia during his mammoth knock of 202 in Ranchi. He faced 525 balls in a 672-minute stay in the middle eight years ago. 

Pujara fought 1258 balls during the BGT 2018/19 series in Australia. This is the fourth most deliveries an India batter has faced in a bilateral red-ball series. During the trip, Australia tried to target the batter’s body, which took its toll on every part. But they were unable to break Pujara’s courage and determination in the middle. 

His Ranchi double century was as important as he smashed 123 runs against Australia in Adelaide in 2018. India were limping at 41/4, when his knock proved decisive for the tourists to win the fixture. His 56 off 211 balls at the Gabba in the BGT 2020/21 proved his resilience in the middle. That set the platform for Rishabh Pant and others to seal the victory. 

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