CHENNAI: Cheteshwar Pujara’s reputation as a testing specialist had hampered his IPL prospects for the past few years, but India’s No. 3 is now ready to turn the corner to CSK in the next edition, having collected clues from people like Rohit sharma and virat Kohli.
Pujara, which was unsold for several years, was picked up by CSK at a base price of Rs 50 lakh during the last auction and is now ready with a change of mind and focus towards the shorter format.
When asked about his hit rate, which will always stand out due to his lack of power, Pujara said it will depend on timing, like his national team captain Kohli or his substitute Rohit.
“… As far as strike rate goes, yes, I agree that I’m not a powerful hitter. But at the same time, you learn from players like Virat (Kohli). Rohit (Sharma), he’s not purely a Powerful hitter, but he’s one of the best timekeepers on the ball I’ve seen in the shorter formats, “Pujara told ESPN Cricinfo.
Even the likes of the New Zealand skipper Kane williamson It could be a great example to emulate as he plays all the cricket shots.
“You learn from players like Kane Williamson. Even Steven smith. They all score runs just by playing cricket shots, and at the same time they will be innovative, “said Pujara.
“I also have that mentality, that if I want to be successful, I also need to be innovative, but at the same time, you can score runs playing cricket shots. You need to improve on power generation, I don’t deny it, but ultimately the sense. cricket is what I think will be his main strength. ”
The 33-year-old admitted that during the early stages of his career, he used to feel that adjusting his game to suit the needs of T20 would hamper his test cricket, but not anymore.
“… it all comes from experience. When I was playing with the T20 format in the past, I was a little worried, what if my test cricket breaks down? Then there will be some technical error once the IPL is over.
“But now I got over it. What I realized over a period of time is that my natural game, my strengths, will never go away,” Pujara said.
And what helped him were words of wisdom from Rahul dravid, when they had interacted many moons ago.
“I got this advice from Rahul bhai (Dravid) a long time ago, but I’d still like to mention it. He told me that your natural game won’t change even if you try to make different shots.
“I started playing cricket at a young age. I made my first-class debut in 2005-06. I have played this game for almost 15 years.
“So if I’m playing the T20 format now, when preparing for a test series, I won’t forget the test cricket. Adjusting to the T20 format and moving to test cricket again will not be a problem for sure.”
If someone has been a successful red ball player, tackling a white ball format is not that difficult, that’s what Pujara feels.
“I definitely think so, especially the way the cue ball travels. It’s just about making the mental change. I feel like mentally if you’re ready to make some adjustments, you don’t need a lot of pressure,” he said. saying.
“In test cricket there is a lot of pressure, there is a price on your wicket. But in the shorter format you just need to express yourself and play as many shots as you can.”
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