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Cheteshwar-Pujara
Cheteshwar Pujara stated that he never asked Rishabh Pant to control his temper during the 3rd Test against Australia. Pant smashed 97 off just 118 balls. The way he smashed the Aussie bowlers is something unusual considering the Test format. The Australians felt the wrath of Pant, who smacked 12 fours and 3 sixes in his innings. Unfortunately, he got out by Nathan Lyon, falling just 3 short of a century.
Pujara also played a crucial knock of 77, giving the visitors a fighting chance. Unlike Pant, Pujara is not known for aggressive batting. Instead, Pujara played quite sensibly and kept rotating the strike to the more aggressive Pant. Ultimately, the duo went to score a record 148 run partnership between them. This is the highest 4th wicket partnership ever for India in the 4th innings in a Test format. The previously held record was for 139 runs by Rusi Modi and Hazare.
Unfortunately, both Pujara and Pant got out as it all boiled down to Hanuma Vihari and Ravichandran Ashwin. The duo ensured that Australia did not win the 3rd Test, as it eventually resulted in a draw. In a post-match presentation, Pujara was asked whether he hampered Pant to play aggressively. To this, Pujara replied stating that he never asked Pant to go on the back foot. Instead, Pujara backed Pant to smash the ball out of the park, as it was piling pressure on the Aussies.
The focus is more on the result - Cheteshwar Pujara
Indian commentator Sanjay Manjrekar asked Pujara regarding his feelings on reaching the 6000 run milestone in Test cricket. Pujara replied by stating that he was excited to achieve this feat. However, he also reckoned that he was completely oblivious of the fact that he had done so.
Pujara is the 6th Indian batsmen with the least innings played to reach 6000 runs. It took Pujara 134 innings to amass 6000 runs in Test cricket. 1st on the list is Indian veteran Sunil Gavaskar, who took only 117 innings to reach the milestone.
Pujara signed off by stating that it is the final result that matters ultimately. He concluded that Indian would be more than happy to seal the series in the 4th Test against Australia. Indian fans would be overwhelmed if India manages to pull off a victory in the final test. However, with the absence of Hanuma Vihari and Ravindra Jadeja, it definitely won’t be a walk in the park.