Cheteshwar Pujara announces retirement from all forms of cricket: ‘Wearing the Indian jersey…’

Pujara made the announcement on social media. In the emotional statement, he wrote that wearing the Indian jersey and giving his all was an indescribable honour, but with gratitude, he has decided to retire from all forms of Indian cricket.

“Wearing the Indian jersey, singing the anthem, and trying my best each time I stepped on the field – it’s impossible to put into words what it truly meant. But as they say, all good things must come to an end, and with immense gratitude I have decided to retire from all forms of Indian cricket. Thank you for all the love and support,” he wrote on X.

Pujara also attached a lengthy statement along with the post, where he spoke about his two-decade-long journey, expressing gratitude to teammates, coaches, fans, and family. He called representing India an honour, cherished the memories and lessons cricket gave him, and thanked everyone who stood by him throughout his career.

Pujara retired from international cricket as the eighth-highest run-getter in Test cricket for India, with a tally of 7195 runs at an average of 43.60, laced with 19 centuries and 35 fifties. Since making his debut in 2010, he appeared in 103 Test matches.

For more than a decade, he stood as India’s rock at No. 3, shaping some of the team’s most memorable Test victories both at home and abroad. One of those iconic performances came in India’s 2018/19 tour of Australia, where he played the central role in the team’s historic series win. He scored 521 runs, faced 1,258 balls, and struck three centuries. His courageous show was even compared to that of the legendary Sunil Gavaskar’s 774-run haul in the 1970/71 tour of the West Indies. Four years later, he helped them win again, with three fifties in eight innings.

The 37-year old also appeared in 130 List A games, scoring 5759 runs at 57.01 with 16 centuries. Five of those appearances came for India. He also played 70 T20 matches, notching up 1556 runs, and was part of the IPL-winning Chennai Super Kings squad in 2021.

Pujara’s decision to retire from the sport came just three months after he expressed his hunger and desire to be part of the Indian squad for the tour of England. In the last Ranji Trophy season, he played seven games for Saurashtra and scored 402 runs at an average of 40.20, including a double century against Chhattisgarh. He also featured in six first-class County games for Sussex last year, scoring 501 runs. But unfortunately was not recalled.

A giant of first-class cricket, Pujara has 21301 runs under his belt, at 51.82, with 66 hundreds, of which 18 were double tons – the fifth most in history. He was also the first Indian to score three triple centuries – 302* for Saurashtra against Orissa in 2008/09, 352 for Saurashtra against Karnataka in 2012/13, and 306* for India A against West Indies A in 2013/14. The feat was later matched by India and Saurashtra teammate Ravindra Jadeja.

He also had a prolific career with Sussex, where he spent three seasons (2022-2024), and amassed 1,863 runs in 18 County Championship matches, averaging an impressive 64.24. This tally included eight centuries and three half-centuries. His standout performance came in his debut season, where he smashed 231 against Derbyshire, sharing a remarkable 351-run partnership with Tom Haines, who also scored a double century. In the following season, he was named the captain, and on his debut appearance in the role, he scored a century against Durham.

He made his last appearance in competitive cricket in early February this year, in the Ranji Trophy quarterfinal match against Gujarat at home, scoring 26 and 2.