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As Australia gears up to face India in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25, pacer Josh Hazlewood expressed relief over Cheteshwar Pujara's absence from the upcoming five-match series.
Pujara last featured in a Test match during the ICC World Test Championship final against Australia in June of the previous year, a game India lost. Known for his resilience, Pujara, alongside Ajinkya Rahane, was a cornerstone of India's middle-order batting from the early 2010s through the early 2020s. Over 103 Tests, he amassed 7,195 runs at an impressive average of 43.60, including 19 centuries and 35 half-centuries. His highest score remains an unbeaten 206.
Although Pujara also appeared in five ODIs for India, his decline in form began after India's historic triumph at The Gabba in Brisbane in January 2021. That victory sealed a memorable series win in Australia, but his performances faltered afterwards. In 22 subsequent Tests, he managed just 1,084 runs at an average of 29.29, registering only one century and seven fifties in 40 innings. These struggles ultimately led to his exclusion from the squad.
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"I am pretty happy that Cheteshwar Pujara is not around this time. He's someone who spends a lot of time out there, and tires out the bowlers. But the depth in Indian cricket is pretty good and the younger guys have a lot of talent as well," Hazelwood said in the pre-match presser.
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The upcoming five-Test match series between India and Australia is scheduled to start from November 22. This series will be important for India to confirm their spot in the World Test Championship (WTC) final for the third consecutive time. The Men in Blue need to register 4-0 win in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy to seal their spot in the WTC final without depending on the other team's outcomes.
India's squad for Border-Gavaskar Series: Rohit Sharma (c), Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammad Shami, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Ravindra Jadeja, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Sarfaraz Khan, Virat Kohli, Prasidh Krishna, Rishabh Pant (wk), KL Rahul, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar.
Australia squad for the first Test: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Nathan McSweeney, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc.
