Rajkot: Cheteshwar Pujara, who overcame a bout of illness to play a vital knock for Saurashtra in the Ranji Trophy final against Bengal, is now down with a back issue and only will bat in the second innings if required.
Pujara did not take the field on day three after pulling a back muscle during warm-up as Bengal reached 134/3 in their first innings at close of play, trailing Saurashtra by 291 runs.
“Pujara pulled his back while warm-up. He then went to the hospital for a scan. He will only bat if required,” Saurashtra Cricket Association president Jaydev Shah said.
Pujara and Arpit Vasavada had batted together for five hours on day two to lay the foundation for a formidable 425.
On the opening day, Pujara got retired hurt due to fever, days after his return from New Zealand.
PTI