Sunil Gavaskar slams team management for messing up Cheteshwar Pujara's game

The Indian batting order in overseas conditions seems to be stuck in an unbreakable limbo of errors. From poking the tempting ball outside the off-stump like clockwork to pulling the short ball in a moment of misjudgment into the hands of the waiting fielder, the woes have been piling up for the Indians in the ongoing series against England. Recently, it was Sunil Gavaskar who attempted to decode the uncharacteristic dismissal of Cheteshwar Pujara.

Pujara, who’s known for his classical technique and his ability to stay long hours at the crease, stunned everyone including himself on the first day of the third Test when he pulled a short ball from Chris Woakes in a moment of rashness, straight into the hands of Adil Rashid and gifted away his prized wicket at the stroke of lunch.

In his column for the Times of India, Gavaskar opined, “Pujara, whose mind has been messed up by being told about his scoring rate, went for a hook on the stroke of lunch and was caught at the deep square leg. That’s not his natural shot and just showed that when you try and tell a batsman to change his approach after he has got more than 4000 runs, it can be counter-productive. Pujara’s strength is occupying the crease, so that batsmen at the other end can play their shots around him.”

Batting first – a blessing in disguise

However, the veteran cricketer expressed hope for a better performance from India this time around. He also felt that batting first will probably go in their favour as the ball might turn later in the game. “India losing the toss and being asked to bat first could well turn out to be a blessing in disguise for with the way the pitch has played the ball could turn for the team batting last and that won’t be easy to negotiate,” Gavaskar said.

The 69-year-old praised the way Indian openers applied themselves and denied an early wicket to England in testing conditions. “When the Indians got to 50 without losing a wicket, Joe Root, the England skipper would have been wondering if his decision to field first was correct. Dhawan and Rahul looked good as they played close to the body didn’t poke outside the off stump and looked solid,” he concluded.

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