Cheteshwar Pujara signifies winning on overseas conditions

India lost their erstwhile Test series against South Africa by a margin of 2-1. However, after losing the first couple of games, Virat Kohli’s men stormed back to humble the hosts at Johannesburg. Riding on the stupendous victory at the Wanderers, India also clinched the ICC Test Championship mace. The victory also meant that no team can surmount India in the Test rankings on April 3, the cut-off date.

Cheteshwar Pujara has been an instrumental element of the Indian lineup. The Saurashtra cricketer has grown leaps and bounds as his career has progressed. And has been a thorn in the flesh of oppositions. To multiply Pujara’s joy, he has recently been blessed with a baby girl. The Indian middle-order batsman spoke to the media regarding India’s aim to consistently win abroad.

Winning abroad- The motive

“To start with, it feels really good to retain the top spot in Test cricket and get the mace. It is something we as a team thrive to do and to be honest, be it under Dhoni or now under Kohli, the motive has always been to win Tests and not just in India, but also overseas. It is true that this team has done really well in Test cricket in the last two seasons, but to be fair, people tend to overlook Dhoni’s contribution as Test captain” Pujara said.

The Indian middle-order batsman also heaped praises on MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli, the two skipper he has played under in the longest version of the game. “Also, talking about the two captains is a bit unfair because Dhoni led for a while and Kohli has just about started off and settled down. Maybe we can do that in some time from now. But yes, it was a pleasure to play under Dhoni and it is no different to be led by Kohli.” Pujara added

With the Nidahas Trophy and the Indian Premier League down the league, Pujara doesn’t have much cricket to look forward to in the country. However, the cricketer has signed for Yorkshire to play in the upcoming County Championship.