Cheteshwar Pujara and Steve Smith bat together for Sussex in County Championship ahead of Test Championship final

Steve Smith & Cheteshwar Pujara (Source: Twitter)

The two star batters from India and Australia, Steve Smith and Cheteshwar Pujara, who are due to face off in the much-awaited Test Championship final commencing next month, have batted together for Sussex in the ongoing County Championship season. The Pujara-led county club currently plays against Worcestershire at New Road, Worcester.

The match started on Thursday, May 4, with Sussex winning the toss and opting to to field first. They bowled out Worcestershire for 264-10 in the first innings. The hosts' top-order batters were unable to find resistance at the crease, but a brilliant half-century from No. 5 batter Adam Hose, as well as tail-enders Matthew Waite and Joe Leach, helped them cross the 250-run mark. England medium pacer Ollie Robinson was outstanding with the ball for the visitors, taking seven wickets in 17 overs.

Sussex, in response, are on the verge of taking the lead in the first innings, thanks to skipper Pujara's unbeaten half-century. Their top three batters failed to make much of an impact, but Pujara and Smith's partnership brought them back into the game. The former Australian captain departed after scoring 30 runs, but India's Test specialist continued to attack the bowlers.

Soon to face each other in the World Test Championship Final, Steve Smith and Cheteshwar Pujara are batting together for Sussex 🤜🤛 pic.twitter.com/DCfrgDiHg2

— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) May 5, 2023

Smith will be available for three County Championship matches for Sussex, including the ongoing clash. They will next face Leicestershire on May 11, followed by a home game against Glamorgan on May 18. Pujara, who has been with Sussex since last summer, has smashed 7 centuries in 12 innings for them.

Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma-led India will lock horns against Pat Cummins-led Australia from June 7 at the Oval in London in the second edition of the Test Championship final.

India’s Test Squad for WTC Final

Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, KL Rahul, KS Bharat (WK), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Jaydev Unadkat.

Australia’s Test Squad for WTC Final

Pat Cummins (captain), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Todd Murphy, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith (vice-captain), Mitchell Starc, David Warner.