Cricket

Australia thought they had already won – Cheteshwar Pujara on 2017 Border-Gavaskar trophy

 

India’s Test specialist Cheteshwar Pujara recalled the 2017 Border-Gavaskar trophy which his team won by a margin of 2-1. The hosts were down 0-1 after losing the first Test at Pune and Pujara felt the visitors were a bit complacent in their approach. Pujara added that the Australian thought that they had already won the series as they were sledging when he came out to bat in the second Test at Bengaluru.

Meanwhile, India was obliterated in the first Test at Pune by 333 runs. Steve O’ Keefe scalped 12 wickets in the match and Steven Smith scored a fine century on a rank turner.

Subsequently, Australia had put their noses ahead in the series. The visitors once again had a good start to the second Test when they dismissed India for 189 and then took a 87 runs lead after making 276 runs.

However, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane were able to bail India out of trouble as they both scored fifties. Both the right handers added 138 runs in the second dig which helped India post 274, thus setting a target of 188 for the Australians.

The tourists could only manage 112 runs as Ravichandran Ashwin bagged six wickets for 41 runs. Thus, India cruised to a comfortable win of 75 runs to draw level in the series.

“I felt pressure when I walked into bat (2nd innings). The kind of sledging they did… I thought they were a little ahead of what they wanted to achieve. Their thought process was… they felt they had already won the game,” Pujara said. “By Tea time, I was with Ajinkya (Rahane), we were coming into the dressing room and they were sledging as if they had won the game. That is when things did turn around, I felt,” Pujara said while talking to Ravichandran Ashwin in an Instagram live interaction.

Subsequently, the third Test match at Ranchi ended in a stalemate and India went on to win the fourth Test at Dharamshala by eight wickets. In fact, Indian captain Virat Kohli was injured and Ajinkya Rahane had led in the final Test.

Meanwhile, Cheteshwar Pujara was the second highest run-scorer in the series with 405 runs in four matches at an impressive average of 57.85 with the help of one century and two fifties. On the other side, Ravichandran Ashwin finished as the second highest wicket-taker with 21 scalps at an average of 27.38.

 

 

Written by: Gautam Chauhan

About the Author


Written by DafaNews

DafaNews brings you the most highlighted news in the world of Sports. It serves you up-to-date matches, scores, live streams, fantasy games and quizzes. Our news covers India's prestigious leagues and events – Premier League, Pro Kabbadi League, Cricket World Cup and many more. Follow DafaNews on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter,Telegram and Youtube for more updates.

Related Post
Share
Published by
DafaNews

Recent Posts

“Never expected a very easy run” – Gautam Gambhir reflects on his tenure as coach after IND vs NZ 2024 Test series defeat

India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir has admitted that he never expected a very easy run… Read More

October 31, 2024

Probably has a lot to do with playing on flat wickets in T20 – Gautam Gambhir on decline of good defensive technique in Test cricket

India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir feels T20 cricket has led to the downfall of a… Read More

October 31, 2024

India needs Mumbai Test win before Australia tour – Gautam Gambhir

Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir feels the Rohit Sharma-led team desperately needs to win the… Read More

October 31, 2024

I cannot say just the batters have let us down – Gautam Gambhir feels everyone should take responsibility for series loss against New Zealand

India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir refused to blame the batters after the team’s 2-0 series… Read More

October 31, 2024

It was insane – Bronny James after scoring his first NBA bucket

Los Angeles Lakers rookie Bronny James was on cloud nine after he managed to score… Read More

October 31, 2024

I’m happy with my team’s performance: Mohun Bagan SG head coach Jose Molina after win against Hyderabad FC

Mohun Bagan Super Giant head coach Jose Molina was delighted with the team’s performance after… Read More

October 31, 2024