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Cricket Players‘Ashwin said I am very stubborn…': Pujara reacts to India all-rounder's remark ahead of landmark 100th Test vs Australia
When asked about his preparations for these years before a Test match, Cheteshwar Pujara mentioned teammate Ravichandran Ashwin's comments about him being "stubborn."
Cheteshwar Pujara will play his 100th Test when India take on Australia in the second Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Delhi on Friday. Pujara will become only the second Indian after Virat Kohli in the current XI to represent the country in 100 Tests. India's No.3, who could not get a big score in the first Test in Nagpur after getting out caught at short fine leg while trying to sweep debutant Todd Murphy, will be looking to make his landmark Test memorable.
Pujara thanked his family for the constant support and informed that his father will be present on Friday during the special occasion. "When I started playing cricket, I never thought I would play 100 tests. Playing 100 Tests means a lot to me and my family, my father has played an important role, and he will be here tomorrow. I am thankful to my family for their support, but there is a lot more to achieve," Pujara said in the pre-match press conference on Thursday.
When asked about his preparations for these years before a Test match, the 35-year-old mentioned teammate Ravichandran Ashwin's comments about him being "stubborn."
"Ashwin has recently spoken about me being very stubborn. As long as you stick to your methods, as long as you are confident about your ways, you can be successful. You also have to be disciplined. I have certain routines, I pay a lot of attention to my fitness. I do yoga, meditation and pranayam which has helped me to stay in the present and shut down the outside noise. It has helped me detach from the noise outside, be it in a newspaper, or on social media, even if it is positive," Pujara said.
Ashwin, a couple of days ago, in an article for ESPNCricinfo, talked about how it is difficult to convince Pujara to come out of his zone. Pujara said he always works on his strengths.
"As a player you need to know your strengths and weaknesses. In the last few years, I learned to stick to my strengths, I have added a few more shots to my game," he added.
Pujara is known for his patience with the bat, the right-hander said it does not come easily and he has been working on that aspect of the game from junior cricket. “Patience does not come on its own, you need mental strength for that, preparation is key, I scored runs at junior cricket, age group cricket. It requires hard work over a period of time and I think when you focus on your game, eventually, you will succeed.”
India head coach Rahul Dravid also lauded Pujara and congratulated him for his 100th Test match.
"It is a big achievement for any player. Yes, you need talent but you need a lot of other things. It's a reflection of your longevity and many other things. Your fitness, your resilience, ability to handle success and failure," Dravid, who has the second highest number of Test caps for India (164), said on Wednesday.
"When you play 100 games, it's not possible that you haven't seen ups and downs. You need to clear obstacles and bear the pain when you are down and play different kinds of bowling, various questions are asked on and off the field.
"To play 100 Tests, you need a minimum of 10 years and he has played for 13-14 years. It is a tribute to his skill which is there but so many other things are also there," the coach said.
