No regrets, have been fortunate to have played for long time: Pujara
Rajkot (PTI): 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'."
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
