Cheteshwar Pujara has been a man in the spotlight. Two years since he last scored a Test hundred and poor run of form in the recent matches saw calls for the 'Test specialist' batsman being replaced arise. However, in the second innings of the Headingley Test, Pujara proved why he is still one of India's most reliable options in the middle-order.
In 180 balls he faced on Day 3, Pujara scored 91 runs at a strike rate of over 50. It isn't just the number of runs he got but also the intent with which Pujara faced the England bowlers that impressed many. When asked about Pujara's innings, Rohit Sharma said that the batsman had arrived in the middle with the intent to score runs.
“You are talking about a guy who has played 80-odd Test matches. I don’t think anything needs to be shown (old videos of his batting) before the game. Of course, there is a time to do all of that. But once you are playing a Test, you don’t want to get too much into details about what you are doing and what you want to. Talking about his batting, yes he definitely came with an intent to score runs. This innings of ours was never about survival. We had the intent to score runs and Pujara clearly showed that.”
“The way he got off the mark and then carried on from there, anything loose, he was ready to pounce on it. It shows that he had intent in his batting and that really helps. When you have that sort of intent, any loose deliveries will not be spared. With Pujara, we have seen it over the years, he is a very disciplined batsman. Yes, of late the runs haven’t come. But that doesn’t mean that the quality of Pujara has gone missing. The quality has always been there and you must have seen it today,” Rohit added.
“The way he batted, it was not the easiest of situations to go in and bat when you are 300 runs behind. To bat the way he batted, shows the character of the individual. Somebody who has gone everywhere and scored runs. From his perspective, he batted really well. But again, the team’s job is not done yet. We have got a crucial couple of days coming up. Hopefully, he can put his head down and keep batting like he does.”
Chatter among fans and experts has been such that many reckoned the Headingley Test as the final opportunity for Pujara to keep hold of his place in the team. With the likes of Hanuma Vihari and Suryakumar Yadav waiting in the wings, Pujara's out-of-form performances had led to many asking for a change.
According to Rohit, however, there's been no talk over Pujara's batting in the Indian dressing room. Though Rohit admitted that Pujara's hasn't been among runs for a while, his performances in Australia and the partnership with Ajinkya Rahane at Lord's cannot be overlooked.
“To be honest, there has not been any talk about Pujara’s batting. The talks are only happening outside. Not a single conversation had happened with Pujara regarding his form inside the team dressing room. We know the quality and experience that he brings to the table. When you have a guy like that, I don’t think there needs to be much of a discussion."
“If you talk about his recent performances, yes he has not scored runs. But we saw a crucial partnership between him and Ajinkya (Rahane) at Lord’s, not to forget what he did in Australia. Those were crucial innings for us to win that historic Test series (2018-19). Sometimes we tend to forget, our memories are shortened. We need to think about what the guy has done over the years. It is not about one of two series’. It is about what he has done in his entire career,” Rohit concluded.
https://www.timesnownews.com/sports...s-questions-on-cheteshwar-pujaras-form/804771
