Experienced Indian batsman Cheteshwar Pujara surpassed the 800-run mark in the ongoing season of the Ranji Trophy on Sunday, February 25. This marks the third occasion in Pujara's domestic first-class career that he has achieved this milestone, with the first instance dating back to the 2008-09 campaign.

Cheteshwar Pujara scores over 800 runs in Ranji Trophy 2024

Cheteshwar Pujara achieved this feat during his innings in Saurashtra's quarter-final clash against Tamil Nadu. Displaying remarkable form throughout the tournament, Pujara has already notched up one double century and two centuries in the tournament. Pujara tried to salvage the match for Saurashtra against a formidable Tamil Nadu side but his 46-run knock in the second innings went in vain as his side lost the crucial encounter.

His Ranji Trophy 2024 campaign began with an outstanding unbeaten knock of 243 runs against Jharkhand. Subsequently, Pujara has delivered consistent performances, including scores of 49, 43, 43, 66, 91, 3, 0, 110, 25, and 108 in the group stage matches. He scored 2 and 46 runs in the quarterfinals but his team failed to win the game. 

Pujara was dismissed for just 2 runs in the first innings of the quarterfinals against Tamil Nadu. Consequently, Saurashtra could only manage a total of 183 runs in 77.1 overs. In response, Tamil Nadu displayed a strong batting performance, posting 338 runs in their first innings. 

Contributions from batsmen like Baba Indrajith, who scored 80 off 139 balls, bolstered their innings alongside R Sai Kishore and Boopathi Vaishna Kumar M. Tamil Nadu then managed to bowl out Saurashtra for 122 runs in the second innings, winning the match by an innings and 33 runs.  

Sai Kishore was named the player of the match for his all-round performance. Thanks to his efforts, Tamil Nadu became the first team to qualify for the semi-final of Ranji Trophy 2024.