NEW DELHI: Cheteshwar Pujara is recognised as one of the best batsmen in the world in Test cricket but his limited-overs career on the international circuit is quite a different story. While he has played 77 Test matches and averages nearly 50 in the longest format, he played just five ODIs in which he scored a measly 51 runs between August 2013 and June 2014.
Indian spin great Dilip Doshi, however, believes that Pujara deserves a spot in the ODI team. "I will not drop a guy like Pujara from my ODI team," said Doshi in a chat with Playwrite Foundation.
"I will ask him to hold one end and keep on batting till the 50th over and I think he is quite capable of it. It hurts me when people call a high-class batsman such Cheteshwar Pujara as too slow," Doshi added.
Pujara has also never played a T20 match for India. He averages above 50 in his List A career however and in February 2019, scored his first-ever T20 century while playing for Saurashtra in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy opener against Railways.
Pujara however has become indispensable in the longest format for India particularly after top-scoring for the team in their historic series win over Australia Down Under in the 2018/19 season.