India star batter Cheteshwar Pujara has been presented with the prestigious Arjuna award five years after he was recommended for the honour.
Pujara could not attend the awards ceremony back in 2017 due to his cricketing commitments. On Saturday, he finally got his hands on the trophy at a handover ceremony.
"Thankful to India Sports, BCCI, and Anurag Thakur to organize and handover the Arjuna Award belatedly, which I could not collect the year it was awarded to me due to my cricket commitments. Honoured and grateful," he tweeted.
In the 96 Test matches that he played, Pujara has scored 6792 runs including 18 centuries and 33 fifties with the highest score of 206 and an average of 43.81.
He has played five ODIs so far and has smashed 51 runs at an average of 10.20 and with the highest score of 27.
When it comes to T20s, Pujara has played 71 matches and has scored 1556 runs including a century and nine fifties. He has hammered 182 boundaries and 27 sixes.
Pujara, who plays domestic cricket for Saurashtra, is in the national capital for the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
He will be a part of the India A squad that will tour Bangladesh ahead of the two-Test series in the neighbouring country next month.
Pujara had made a comeback into the Indian team following exemplary performances in county cricket.
(Inputs from PTI)
