‘Best picture on internet today’: India, Pakistan fans thrilled as picture of Pujara, Rizwan in Sussex kit goes viral

India batter Cheteshwar Pujara and Pakistan’s wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan made their respective debuts for Sussex in the County Championships (Division 2) on Thursday. The side is taking on Derbyshire in its second game of the tournament, and ahead of the scheduled start, Sussex posted a picture of their two international stars from India and Pakistan, as they posed for a picture after receiving their debut caps.

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“Debut day for these two,” Sussex wrote on their official Twitter account with the picture of Pujara and Rizwan.

This is Pujara’s fifth stint in the County Championships, having earlier represented Derbyshire, Yorkshire (twice), and Nottinghamshire. Rizwan, meanwhile, is playing in his first County season.

As Sussex posted the picture, the fans from both India and Pakistan reacted:

Both players were named in the Sussex playing eleven which is captained by Tom Daines. With Derbyshire opting to bat, Pujara and Rizwan are expected to bat on day two.

Both the players stand at the opposite end of their international careers. While Pujara will be aiming to score a bagful of runs to make a Test comeback after being dropped following the tour of South Africa, Rizwan has been one of the best wicket-keeper batters in international cricket over the last couple of years.

With Sussex having lost their opening game, head coach Ian Salisbury included both overseas stars for the contest against Derbyshire.

“I am extremely excited to be able to bring in players of Rizwan and Pujara’s quality into the side. Not only are they absolute world-class cricketers that will boost our performances on the pitch, but to have them around the boys and in the dressing room can only be a positive,” said the head coach in a team statement.