‘He reminds me of Hashim Amla’- Sunil Gavaskar lauds Cheteshwar Pujara’s terrific temperament after Johannesburg Test

Legendary cricketer Sunil Gavaskar was effusive in praise of India batter Cheteshwar Pujara and said he reminds him of former South Africa cricketer Hashim Amla. Gavaskar also felt a player with Pujara’s temperament and class is an asset for the Indian team. India’s number three finally came good in the second Test match against South Africa in Johannesburg as he scored a vital half-century in the second innings.

Pujara scored 53 runs and formed a crucial 111-run stand with Ajinkya Rahane on a difficult pitch at the Wanderers. Puajra’s knock, though, could not help India win the Test as Dean Elgar played a captain’s knock and took the team home with seven wickets remaining. However, Pujara’s temperament and his valiant efforts were lauded by one and all. He remained calm and went about his business in a composed manner.

"When I look at him, he reminds me of Hashim. Watching Hashim bat, you know there’s a sense of calm that everything is under control," Sunil Gavaskar said in a conversation with SuperSport.

"The ball could be doing things but there was that sense because even on pitches where the ball was turning, the way Hashim was batting in India, it was almost as if, ‘look, nothing’s happening’, and that’s the same thing with Cheteshwar Pujara," he added.

Gavaskar opined Cheteshwar Pujara’s temperament in the dressing room must be terrific due to the way he approaches his innings.

"It is a great, great blessing to have players of this temperament in your dressing room. (It may not be) necessarily just on the field but it’s a huge plus and I think having somebody with Cheteshwar Pujara’s temperament in the changing room must be absolutely terrific because, in international cricket, there are several moments of tension where people would want to do this or that or the other. When you have somebody who’s going to think about it calmly and give you a measured opinion it makes a big difference," Gavaskar further said.