With 6589 runs from 92 Tests at an impressive average of 44.82, Cheteshwar Pujara is without a doubt one of the finest batters to have represented India in red-ball cricket. And the middle-order batter will be hoping to add a truckload of runs to his tally during the upcoming three-match Test series in South Africa for which he’s hit the top gear in practice sessions.
The tour holds vital importance for Pujara since he has not been able to perform at his best in recent times. While the 33-year-old continues to step up and delivery whenever the team has been in dire straits, the consistency has been missing.
Also Read: ‘Difficult For Ajinkya Rahane to Find a Place in India XI’
And then there is the small matter of him not hitting a century in nearly three years now. Pujara last scored a hundred during the Australia tour of 2018-19 when he made 193 at the Sydney Cricket Ground in January 2019.
Since then, he has recorded a bunch of half-centuries but the closest he came to ending his century drought was during the England tour earlier this year. Pujara made 91 in Leeds before being dismissed.
Pujara shared a series of pictures from his training session on Sunday which he captioned, “Getting into the groove”.
With the next generation of India players knocking on the doors, Pujara, who at one point was seemed untouchable, will be under some pressure to justify his place now.
Meanwhile, India will be hoping to end their wait for a maiden Test triumph on South African soil with Pujara expressing confident of it happening this time around.
Also Read: ‘It Seems a Burden Has Been Removed From Kohli’s Head’
“The good thing is we played a couple of Test matches in India,” Pujara said in an interview to BCCI. “So most of the guys are in touch, and when it comes to preparation, the support staff has been excellent. They have been supporting us well and we have five or six days more before we head into the first Test. I am sure there is enough time for us to prepare and guys are looking forward to this series. This is the best opportunity for us to win our first series in South Africa. So all of us are looking forward to it.”
Get all the IPL news and Cricket Score here
.