5 Indians who won the player of the tournament award in the U19 World Cup

#3 Cheteshwar Pujara (2006)

Cheteshwar Pujara

While Cheteshwar Pujara has failed to establish himself in the Indian limited overs squads, he too took the U19 World Cup route to pave his way for future fame and success. In the 2006 edition, Pujara was the leading run-scorer in the tournament as well as the player of the series.

In six matches, Pujara amassed 349 runs at an average of 116.33 and a strike rate of 82.11, with one hundred and two fifties. He came a cropper in the all-important final though. Pujara was trapped lbw second ball for a duck as India crumbled to 71 all out in a chase of 110, conceding the trophy on a platter.

Four years after impressing in the U19 World Cup, Pujara made his debut for India in the second Test against Australia at Bengaluru in 2010. He made a fluent 72 in the second innings as India chased down 207 with ease to clinch the series 2-0.

After numerous highs and lows, Pujara’s finest moment came against Australia Down Under in 2018-19, when India registered their maiden triumph in the country. The India No. 3 scored over 500 runs in the four-match series, and was instrumental in India’s historic victory.