Cheteshwar Pujara continues stunning run in County Championship, hits 3rd successive hundred for Sussex

India Test specialist Cheteshwar Pujara, playing for Sussex, hit his third successive hundred in the County Championship Div 2 game against Durham on Friday.

Cheteshwar Pujara continued his stunning run for Sussex as the India Test specialist scored a third straight hundred in the County Championship Div 2 game against Durham on Friday. Pujara reached the three-figure mark off 162 balls and hit thirteen boundaries in his well-placed knock for Sussex.

Pujara's 109-run knock follows his 184-ball 101 against Worcestershire and a double hundred against Derbyshire. He was eventually dismissed for a 206-ball 109.

ANOTHER !@cheteshwar1 pic.twitter.com/4nqhzhQjqW

Pujara is only the second Indian to score a double-hundred in the County Championship. Mohammad Azharuddin was the first, having scored 212 against Leicestershire in 1991 and 205 against Durham in 1994, both for Derbyshire.

Pujara is playing in England after failing to find buyers at the Indian Premier League mega auction, which was held in February 2022. Pujara did not travel to England for a county stint last year, despite India's tour of England, as he was bought by Chennai Super Kings at the IPL 2021 auction.

The runs will keep Pujara in contention for a place in the Indian squad when they travel to this part of the world for the fifth Test of the truncated last away series. Pujara, who has had a long run of poor form in international cricket that led to his ouster from the Test squad, also didn’t dominate the bowling as such, even though he looked solid during his nearly four and a half-hour at the crease.

Pujara was axed from India's Test side for the 2-match series against Sri Lanka at home after an ordinary performance during India's tour of South Africa earlier this year. However, India's national selection committee chairman Chetan Sharma said the door would be open for Pujara as well as Ajinkya Rahane, who also faced the ax