With ton, Pujara puts first brick in the wall

As the sun set on Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Thursday evening, Indian cricket seemed to have discovered a new star. The void which has been after the retirement of two of the all-time greats, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman, is hard to fill, but Rajkot run machine, Cheteshwar Pujara who is seen as the most likely successor of ‘Wall’ Rahul Dravid, seemed ready to fill the big shoes.

It will be premature to say if Cheteshwar Pujara, like Dravid, can make the No.3 position his own, but during his unbeaten knock of 119, he displayed a cool temperament akin to his predecessor as he came in to bat in his fourth test and his first since January 2011.

Coming after the early loss of Gautam Gambhir’s wicket, the 24-year-old exhibited same kind of batting skill, temperament and patience, an indication of the fact that he shall carry the latter’s legacy at number three. Pujara’s composed innings which anchored India to 307/5 in the first Test against New Zealand, was studded with 15 fours and a six of Kane Williamson.

Cheteshwar’s Saurashtra team coach Debu Mitra avoided comparison with Dravid but had word of praise for his ward. “You can’t compare him with Dravid. It is too early. Also, I don’t want to make any predictions about his score. But I am sure Kiwis will find it difficult to get him out. Cheteshwar is a kind of batsman who will not throw his wicket away. Moreover, one should remember that he has scored three triple tons in a span of one month, which exhibits his hunger to stay at the wicket,” said Mitra, who is credited with producing a cricketer like Sourav Ganguly.

Pujara’s father Arvind Pujara was also of similar views. Pujara senior refused to compare his son with former captain, but admitted that Cheteshwar has justified the faith shown by the team management.“It is cricket you know, no one can predict. But considering the way he has handled the Kiwi attack, he has the ability to convert his ton into a double,” said Arvind Pujara, who was also his first coach. A former first class cricketer himself, Arvind Pujara understands the importance of his son’s first century. “After debut, this is the biggest day of our lives. It is never easy when you are making a comeback. But he made it look extremely easy and played one of the finest innings. We have been waiting for this for long time,” said Pujara senior, clearly overwhelmed by the situation. Pujara’s family was not alone though! His home town erupted in joy after his century and people were seen bursting firecrackers.