Cheteshwara Pujara went into the Adelaide Test with 4,905 runs in 107 Test innings and was 95 runs away from touching the 5,000-mark in Test cricket.
Cheteshwara Pujara went into the Adelaide Test with 4,905 runs in 107 Test innings and was 95 runs away from touching the 5,000-mark in Test cricket.
Pujara, who has been the best batsman for India on the opening day of their first Test against Australia, reached the milestone on Thursday and in what style. A short ball from Hazlewood was pulled hesitantly by Pujara for a six and that took him to the 5,000-mark in Test cricket.
That shot was followed by a smashing pull through square leg boundary. Is this Pujara 2.0? Wow!
Pujara, who clinched his 16th Test century in front of the Adelaide Oval crowd, became the eighth Indian batsman to reach 5,000 Test runs.
The No. 3 batsman touched the 5,000-mark in his 108th Test innings so that made him the joint-fifth Indian batsman to reach the landmark.
The fastest Indian to 5,000 Test runs still remains legendary Sunil Gavaskar who needed just 95 innings. Next in line were Virender Sehwag (99 innings), Sachin Tendulkar (103 innings) and Virat Kohli (105 innings).
Pujara now along with Rahul Dravid is the joint-fifth Indian batsman to 5,000 Test runs. In the meantime, Pujara beat veterans like Hashim Amla and Ricky Ponting who reached 5,000 Test runs in 109 and 110 innings respectively.
Pujara's gritty innings was the sole silver lining in yet another ordinary batting display which has given a major advantage to the hosts on the opening day.
Pujara hardly has kept a wrong foot today. He's played just five false shots against the seamers today, giving some hope for the Indian fans, while the wickets kept falling on the other end.
Aussie pacer Josh Hazlewood reduced India to 56 for four at lunch. The Australian pacers struck regularly with the new Kookaburra ball and made inroads into the Indian top-order that never got going.
This was after India won the toss and opted to bat on a warm Adelaide day. Hanuma Vihari was left out as the visitors drafted in Rohit for the number six spot. For Australia, Marcus Harris made his Test debut as announced a day prior.
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