The Number Nut: The chinks in Cheteshwar Pujara's armour

Cheteshwar Pujara is someone whom the aficionados of Test cricket would love to watch. He is a man who likes to sweat it out in the middle and is someone who gets his eye in before opening up slowly. You will not see him play a reverse sweep or the scoop ever. He is the classic traditionalist.

And, over the last decade, the right-hander has emerged as one of the important pillars of the Indian Test side, alongside skipper Virat Kohli. And, Pujara has a glittering overall record in Test cricket. He averages 48.67 after 128 innings in the whites, including 18 hundreds and 25 fifties in the longest format of the game.

Things should be hunky-dory right? But then, in this article, let us delve deep and peel some layers to find a few chinks in the armour of India’s No.3 in Test cricket.

The vast differences in home and away records of Pujara

While Pujara has played the same number of home and away innings, he has scored 1102 runs more in Tests played at home. Also, his average in Tests played in India is 21 points more than his average in away Tests.

Also, while he has 28 fifty-plus scores in Tests played at home, he has just about half that number in Tests played away. That’s not all, even his away average of 38.21 is boosted by the fact that Pujara averages a Bradmanesque 90.80 in Sri Lanka.

Now, let us analyse Pujara’s record in the SENA countries and delve deeper:

The chinks in Cheteshwar Pujara’s armour

In the table below, let us have a look at Pujara’s Test record in South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia, popularly referred to as SENA countries.

Out of the 4 SENA countries, it is only Australia where Pujara has rich returns. In the land of the Kangaroos, Pujara averages in excess of 55 and has scored 3 hundreds and 2 fifties in 13 innings. In fact, he played a pivotal role in helping India beating the Aussies for the first time in a Test series on Australian soil in 2018.

But then, it is his record in the other three countries that needs some introspection. In England, Pujara averages just 29.41 and has just the one solitary hundred in 18 innings. Also, in 11 out of the 18 innings that he has played in England, he has been dismissed for a score of below 30.

In New Zealand, Pujara’s returns plummet further. The right-hander has had a torrid time in the land of the Kiwis and averages just 20.00. Also, in 8 innings in New Zealand, he has managed just a single fifty-plus score. Out of the 8 innings that he has played in New Zealand, he has failed to cross the 30 run-mark on 7 occasions.

In South Africa though, he fares slightly better. Pujara averages 31.62 in South Africa and has crossed the three-figure mark once. But even there, he has not crossed the 30 run mark on 9 occasions.

In the West Indies too, Pujara has been mediocre. In the 6 innings that he has played in the Caribbean, he has failed to cross the 50 run mark even once, and averages a lowly 20.33. Out of the 6 innings that he has played in the West Indies, he has been dismissed for a score of below 20 on three occasions, and this is something that is a worry.

Cheteshwar Pujara in the 4th innings

The 4th innings of a Test presents a unique set of challenges to a batsman. First up, there is the pressure of a target to be chased, and it is also that period of play when the pitch starts to crumble and the cracks start to open up.

So, in the table below let us take a look at how Pujara has fared in the 4th innings of a Test.

From the above table, we can see that Pujara averages more than 20 points lower in the 4th innings as compared to his career average. Also, none of his 18 Test hundreds has come in the 4th innings of a Test.

In fact, his only significant contribution in the 4th innings that came in a victory was in the year 2013, when he scored a 92 ball 82 to help India trounce Australia by 6 wickets at Delhi in 2013. Pujara’s record in the 4th innings has indeed been underwhelming.

In Conclusion

Undoubtedly, Pujara is one of the most important members of the Indian batting line up, and nobody is ever going to dispute that. But then, there are some chinks in his armour, that need to be rectified for Pujara to etch his name as one of the greatest batsmen to put on the whites for his country. There is still a long road ahead for Pujara, to iron out the chinks in his armour.