Former Aussie great Matthew Hayden has praised Cheteshwar Pujara for his performance against Australia. The right hand batsman scored 521 runs at a brilliant average of 74.43 and helped his team in winning the maiden Test series on Australian series. He was declared Man of the Series for his exceptional show with the bat.
“I loved the way (Pujara) went about his cricket,” Hayden was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au.
“That sort of tenacious batting almost died with the Allan Border era in this country, and that’s no disrespect to that era – they based their game on defence. Our era was kind of born out of that, and people forget that. Most of the players in our generation, whilst considered to be very attacking players, actually had outstanding defensive games,” he added.
After India’s win in the Test series, Pujara acknowledged the fact that playing in different countries have helped him in improving his batting technique.
“It’s a great feeling for all of us. We’ve been working really hard to win a series overseas. And especially doing it in this country, it’s never easy. First hundred was special, scoring it in Adelaide and going 1-0 up is something which we were all aiming for. When you do that, there’s a good chance of winning the series. So that hundred was special,” Pujara had said.
“As a batsman, you just need to get used to pace and bounce. Playing in different conditions, in South Africa, in England, in county cricket has helped me improve my technique. For me it’s about the right preparation,” Pujara had added.