Pujara, who reached the United Kingdom a couple of months before the Test series, had a tough time with Yorkshire, scoring just 172 runs in six matches at 14.33 in the Division One County C'ship.
Cheteshwar Pujara
While Indian cricket followers expressed surprise over the exclusion of seasoned Test No. 3 batsman Cheteshwar Pujara for the first Test against England at Edgbaston yesterday, former India coach Madan Lal and ex-chairman of selectors Kiran More gave a thumbs up to the team management's decision to play in-form KL Rahul instead.
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Pujara, who reached the United Kingdom a couple of months before the Test series, had a tough time with Yorkshire, scoring just 172 runs in six matches at 14.33 in the Division One County C'ship. Earlier in June, he scored just 35 in the one-off Test against Afghanistan at Bangalore. In the solitary tour game against Essex, Pujara was dismissed for one and 23. Rahul has not looked back since his fruitful IPL-11 and the limited overs series against England.
"If a player is not in form then it is only fair that the one in good touch gets a chance. It is a big test for Rahul, who is rated quite highly. Pujara didn't have any big performances to merit a chance in the playing XI," Madan Lal said. More is confident that Pujara will make a comeback in the series. "It is sad that he is not part of the playing XI. It is more to do with his form than anything else. And it's a five-Test series… I am sure he will get an opportunity," said More.
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