Unadkat made his IPL debut for KKR in IPL 2010 after the successful trials.
This comes after Cheteshwar Pujara announced his retirement from all cricket on August 24, 2025. After 103 tests and 7,195 test runs at 43.60, laced with 19 hundreds and 35 half-centuries over a trip spanning more than 15 years, the 37-year-old concluded his career.
With his outstanding batting efforts over the years, Pujara has been instrumental in elevating Indian Test cricket to new heights.
Indian pacer Jaydev Unadkat shared an intriguing tale of how the batter led to his IPL debut when Pujara declared his retirement.
Unadkat, who shares Pujara's Saurashtra ancestry, said on X (previously Twitter) that he received a text from the seasoned batter in 2010 that altered his life and career.
"Hi Jaydev, this is Cheteshwar. I have had a word with Dada, and you have to go for the KKR trials. You are bowling very well, so keep it up.' This was our first conversation on the phone after one of our Ranji Trophy nets, where I was still a net bowler, back in 2010. Little did I know back then that we would become best mates and share some of our finest memories, and not just on the field," Unadkat wrote on X.
"Your grit and determination for the game is something that everyone talks about and will talk about for generations to come. And deservedly so. But there was that other side of you, the funnier/naughtier/louder side, where we fought (sometimes violently) for every FIFA battle and took the longest to play every hand at the card game and argued on absolutely silly topics. Today, when you are putting an end to your illustrious career, I am super proud, although a bit emotional. I am super proud to call you my senior first, my colleague second, and my brother to round it all off," Unadkat added.
Thanks to Pujara’s word to Ganguly, Unadkat made his IPL debut under Sourav Ganguly’s leadership for KKR in 2010.