No regrets, have been fortunate to have played for long time: Cheteshwar Pujara

Rajkot: He hasn't played Test cricket for the past two years and Cheteshwar Pujara understands more than anyone else that time is right for him to bid adieu without any regrets.

Pujara, 37, announced his retirement from competitive cricket on Sunday, having scored 7195 runs in 103 Tests with 19 centuries at a healthy average of 43 plus.

"There are no regrets. I am very fortunate to have played for the Indian team for such a long time, not many players got that opportunity so I am very thankful to my family and people who have supported me," Pujara told reporters in a media conference in his hometown. He has already started his work as a broadcaster during the recent Test series in England and indicated that he has found his calling in commentary.

"I am really happy that I am calling this off but at the same time I will stay attached to the game. As a cricketer, I would like to stay associated to the cricket, doing commentary and I have started doing media work as well. I am not going to play cricket but I will be watching the Indian team and commenting in it. The honour will continue," he added.

He made his Test debut in 2010 but it was after Rahul Dravid's retirement in 2012 that he made No.3 spot his own for the next decade. He had two memorable tours of Australia but 2018-19 series, where he scored 521 runs with three hundreds, facing as many as 1258 deliveries will always be his lasting legacy.

"There have been many great moments on the field but if i have to single out one Test series on the Australian soil in 2018 was one of the best achievements of my cricketing career and one of the best memories for the India team as well," he said.

"It was one of the best series I have been a part of." Pujara, who literally forced his way into the Indian team in 2019 against Australia had scored a 72 in a run-chase in the second innings in Bengaluru. He remembered how he was overawed when he first entered the Indian dressing room.

"I made my debut for the Indian team in 2010, that was one of the proudest moment of my cricketing journey. When I made my debut in 2010 under Mahi bhai, it was a dream come moment for me because there were some great players in the team.

"Players like Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, I am still trying to recollect those names.. whom I have grown up watching so it was one of the proudest moments of my cricketing career."

On a deeply personal note, he remembered his mother Reena Pujara, who passed away in 2005, after battling cancer when he was 17.

"...she always used to tell my father that don't worry about your son eventually he will play for the Indian team and her words come true and I am sure she will be very proud of the achievements I have made in my cricketing journey.

"But at the same time I still remember her words, she used to tell me that you need to be a good person no matter how big you become as a cricketer, I still remember that and she will be very proud of me."

The veteran batter also expressed gratitude to his spiritual guru Haricharan Das Ji Maharaj for helping him stay calm and balanced during high-pressure moments. "I would also like to thank my spiritual guru, Shri Haricharan Das Ji Maharaj, who has contributed in my spiritual journey. His words, 'You need to be mentally calm and focus on the game because you play in a high-pressure situation, not just in cricket but in life and he has taught me so many things and to stay balanced and focused'."