Cheteshwar Pujara was saved twice by the umpire, after he edged the ball to the keeper, but was not ruled as out by the umpire.
Cheteshwar Pujara was saved twice by the umpire. (Source: PTI)
Despite leading Saurashtra to Ranji Trophy 2018 final with his unbeaten 131-run knock, Cheteshwar Pujara was dubbed as a “cheater” by the fans present at the Chinnaswamy stadium during the semifinal against Karnataka. The right-handed batsman was given two lifelines by the umpire, in the course of the match, as Saurashtra went on to book a final date with Vidarbha.
The first came in the first innings when a nick from Pujara’s gloves went to the wicketkeeper on Ronit More’s delivery. But the umpire Sayied Khalid did not give it out, saying the ball had hit the batsman’s shoulder. The right-handed batsman went on to hit 45 in the first innings.
The second incident came at a more crucial stage in the second innings, when Pujara was batting on 34. In a Vinay Kumar over, the batsman edged it to the keeper, but the same umpire did not hear or see any connection with the bat. The seamer made a huge appeal and was joined by his teammates, but were unable to convince the umpire. Once again, the replays clearly showed an edge of the bat.
A miffed Kumar was seen having an argument with the umpire after the incident. Pujara stitched a 214-run stand for the 4th wicket with Sheldon Jackson as Saurashtra managed to chase down the 279-run target comfortable on the final day of the match with 5 wickets still in hand.
In the process, Pujara also scored his 49th first-class career ton. Saurashtra will play Vidarbha in the final which will begin from February 3, 2019.
