“He is spoken about very little” - When Gautam Gambhir termed an underrated cricketer as the biggest name in India’s Test batting lineup

Current Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir once referred to Cheteshwar Pujara as "extremely underrated." This statement was made during Pujara's 100th Test match, which took place in the 2023 Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

The second match of the series, which was Pujara's landmark 100th Test, took place at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. During a discussion on Star Sports, Gambhir praised Pujara, calling him the "biggest name" in India’s batting lineup. Gambhir said:

"I have seen his debut and I am seeing his 100th Test match as well. I feel he is extremely underrated, he is spoken about very little. We will talk about Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, and others - I believe Cheteshwar Pujara is the biggest name in this Test batting lineup."

"If you see his last series in Australia, we have spoken about Rishabh Pant and other players, for me Cheteshwar Pujara was the Man of the Series because of the way he played in Brisbane, took blows on his body,” he continued.

The 36-year-old was dismissed for a duck in the first innings of his 100th Test but remained unbeaten on 31 in the second innings. India ended up winning the match by six wickets while chasing a target of 115 runs.

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Cheteshwar Pujara has scored over 7,000 Test runs for India

Cheteshwar Pujara made his Test debut for India against Australia in 2010. While he was dismissed for just four runs in the first innings, he made his mark in the second innings, scoring 72 off 89 balls.

Pujara quickly found his feet in international cricket, marking his breakthrough with a superb 159 in his fourth Test against New Zealand. By his sixth Test, he had already scored a double century, remaining unbeaten on 206 against England. The Saurashtra cricketer continued to shine, surpassing 1,000 runs in his 11th Test.

The right-handed batter became a regular fixture in the Test side, solidifying his place at No. 3. While there were periods when his slow strike rate led to him being dropped, he remained one of India’s most consistent performers, particularly on overseas tours. He reached the milestone of 7,000 Test runs in his 98th match.

Pujara’s last appearance for India came in the 2023 World Test Championship final, where he scored 14 and 27 as India lost by 209 runs. Since then, he has been out of favor but has taken on broadcasting roles while continuing to play domestic cricket, with hopes of making a comeback to the national team.

Overall, Pujara has represented India in 103 Test matches, scoring 7,195 runs at an average of 43.60, including 35 fifties and 19 centuries.