Former India star lashes out at BCCI over Cheteshwar Pujara's Test retirement and silent exit of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, says 'these players are not demanding crores of rupees'

Former India all-rounder Karsan Ghavri lashed out at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) after Cheteshwar Pujara announced his retirement from international cricket. He reckons that it is highly likely that the batting great announced his retirement due to frustration with not being able to cement his spot in the Test setup despite his experience.

Pujara recently announced his retirement from all forms of Indian Cricket with immediate effect, having last played an international match way back in June 2023 during the World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia at The Oval in London.

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The 74-year-old star reckoned that the ace batters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma announced their Test retirement for the same reason. Ghavri believes that all of Pujara, Virat and Rohit deserved a farewell Test at the bare minimum, and that the BCCI did not show any efforts to mark a respective end to the legendary cricketers' careers.

“It’s possible, Cheteshwar Pujara may have retired out of frustration. After representing the country for so long, if a player is not getting chances, anyone will be frustrated. Similarly, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma must have felt that frustration too before the recent England tour. The BCCI may have their own ideas, but ultimately, the player suffers. These players are not demanding crores of rupees. It’s all about honour and they all deserved that farewell Test, 110 per cent," stated Ghavri, as quoted by Mid-Day.

“All those who have played 100 Tests, should be honoured with a farewell match. The BCCI should have given that honour to Kohli, Rohit and Pujara as they thoroughly deserved it considering their huge contribution to the game. No one wants to end their career like this. If someone has represented the country in 100 or more Tests, it is most definitely a sizeable contribution. He [Pujara] belongs to that distinguished list of players,” added Ghavri.

Pujara ended his career as India's eighth-highest run-getter in the Test format, with 7,195 runs at an average of 43.60 with 19 centuries to his name. Pujara made his international debut against Australia in Bengaluru on October 9, 2010. One of his most memorable knocks came in India's Border-Gavaskar Trophy triumph in Australia in 2018/19 and 2020/21.