'Thank you for...': Virat Kohli shares heartfelt tribute for Cheteshwar Pujara after the 37-year-old's retirement

Cheteshwar Pujara announced his retirement from all forms of cricket on August 24 after not being able to make any appearance for the Indian team since the World Test Championship (WTC) final in 2023 against Australia. The 37-year-old had been a key figure in the Men in Blue's Test set-up for over a decade and played some knocks which will be remembered by Indian fans for many many years to come.

Many former India cricketers shared heartfelt messages for Pujara after he announced his sudden retirement, showing how much of an impact the batter had for India especially in red-ball cricket. Now, Virat Kohli has also reacted to the 37-year-old's retirement and has thanked him for making his job easier at the No.4 position in the batting order. He further wished Pujara the best of luck for his future endeavours.

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"Thank you for making my job easier at 4 pujji. You've had an amazing career. Congratulations and wish you the best for what's ahead. God bless," Kohli wrote on his Instagram story.

Meanwhile, Pujara called time on his career after featuring in 1`03 Tests and 5 ODIs for India. Despite not getting many chances in white-ball cricket, the batter delivered big time for the Men in Blue in the longest format. He played fine knocks on both home and foreign soil and led the side to some famous victories.

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Pujara scored a total of 7195 runs in Test cricket and maintained a fantastic average of 43.60 as well. Additionally, he hit 19 centuries and 35 half-centuries in the format and is undoubtedly one of the finest modern-day batters to don the Indian jersey.

Pujara's incredible numbers in first-class cricket

The 37-year-old has a brilliant record in first-class cricket as well with a total of 21,301 runs under his name from 278 matches. Pujara has an incredible average of 51.82 in the format, including an outrageous 81 half-centuries and 66 centuries. He is nothing short of a legend for his state team of Saurashtra and even played a big role in taking them to the Elite Division in Ranji Trophy.