Matthew Hayden wants Australian batsmen to take lesson from Cheteshwar Pujara

Australia saw some favourable times in Test cricket after some time as they bowled out Sri Lanka for just 144 in the first innings of the ongoing first Test at The Gabba, Brisbane, on Thursday. Captain Dinesh Chandimal won the toss in the day-night Test and elected to bat but the visitors were never comfortable against the Aussie seamers who shared nine wickets between them. Spearhead Mitchell Starc completed 200 wickets in the longer format while for the visitors, Niroshan Dickwella scored 64 at his side’s highest.

Australia were 2 down for 72 at stumps with opener Marcus Harris, who is playing in his second series, remaining unbeaten on 40 along with nightwatchman Nathan Lyon (zero). Joe Burns was recalled in this Test after 10 months though he could not manage more than 15 after opening. Former Australia opener Matthew Hayden, a local hero, said the lack of first-class centuries showed the slump in Australia’s batting standards and recalled the quality that the batters of the previous generations had set.

Pujara turned the tables on Australia this summer

Hayden, who played 103 Tests for Australia and was known for his powerful hitting up the order, cited the example of Cheteshwar Pujara who excelled with the bat in the recently concluded series against Australia. In the four-game series, Pujara hit three centuries, one of them almost getting into a double, to gather 521 runs and he scored a record 1,200-plus deliveries.

India had a similar situation like the Lankans on the first day of their first Test in Adelaide, losing four with some 40-odd runs on the board and it was Pujara’s magnificent 123 that had turned the game around for them. Buoyed by that hundred, India gathered the confidence and went on to win the series 2-1.

“I loved the way (Pujara) went about his cricket,” the 47-year-old was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au. “That sort of tenacious batting almost died with the Allan Border era in this country, and that’s no disrespect to that era – they based their game on defence. Our era was kind of born out of that, and people forget that. Most of the players in our generation, whilst considered to be very attacking players, actually had outstanding defensive games.”

Hayden, who belonged to a golden era of Australian cricket, advised the current players to consider defence as the “first line of attack” and said Pujara showed it during his stellar performance with the bat Down Under.

Hayden gave the example of Burns, who has the most number of first-class tons among the current Australian batsmen under 30 except the banned Steve Smith. Though in the current Sheffield Shield season, Burns has managed not a single hundred but four fifties.

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