Cheteshwar Pujara's stubborn defiance has helped India in the Test series: Ian Chappell

It is no monstrous surprise that India are on the brink of emerging victorious over Australia, however, the manner in which they have shattered the hosts has been alarming. Virat Kohli, the captain, has engraved his name in the record books but none other than Cheteshwar Pujara has been instrumental in giving them the series and deserves countless recognitions according to the former Australian cricketer Ian Chappell.

The 75-year old almost fell short of words to praise the Saurashtra right-hander. Chappell lauded Pujara for his unshakable determination as he batted for 1258 deliveries, becoming the fifth batsman to face more than 1000 deliveries in a Test series down under. Pujara has not only held the innings together but also shifted the gears when fully set, having scored three hundreds among the 521 runs in the series.

While everyone expected the Indian captain to leave a powerful impact in terms of runs, it is India’s number three who has left a long-lasting footprint. The Aussie believes that Kohli may be the king of the Indian cricket but Pujara protected the kingdom with his application and his super-human sturdiness.

“Kohli may be the king of Indian cricket but Pujara has proven to be his loyal ally and worthy of many privileges in the kingdom. Many good things have happened for India in this series, not the least of them being victory, and most have emanated from the stubborn defiance of Pujara.” said the eldest Chappell as quoted by Times of India.

Hosts entirely focussed on tackling Kohli

Ian Chappell also conceded that the home team was fully concentrating on how to neutralize the Indian captain that the No. 3 batsman was given a lot of leeway and clawed his way to leave Australia distressed.

“That the home team was entirely focussed on how to tackle Kohli prior to the series may have helped Pujara to play at ease. While the Australian cricket team was keeping a wary eye on Virat Kohli, Pujara snuck up from behind and executed the perfect mugging. In addition to India winning a series for the first time in Australia, he frustrated a top-class opposition attack to the point of submission.” he further stated.

[interaction id=”5c31bc7eb1837611a39fe41e”]

Get the latest Cricket News and updates from Australia vs India series, Match Predictions, Fantasy Cricket Tips and lots more on CricTracker.com.