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'An example for any young player who has been dropped...': Kaif lavishes huge praise on 'fantastic' India batter
Under Rohit Sharma, the Indian team is all set to play the crucial Test match in England which was initially scheduled for last September at Old Trafford.
Several senior players including India's all-format captain Rohit Sharma and star batter Virat Kohli are set to return for the one-off Test in Birmingham, beginning July 1. India and England attempt to complete their unfinished five-match series, which India lead 2-1. Under Rohit, the team will play the crucial Test match which was scheduled for last September at Old Trafford but was postponed following Covid-19 cases in the Indian camp. (Also Read | 'If you can't perform, don't expect people to stay quiet': Kapil Dev 'pained' by 'big player' Virat Kohli's poor form)
The Test will also mark the return of senior batter Cheteshwar Pujara, who received a callback on the back of his superb performance for Sussex in England's County Championship. He played the three-Test series against South Africa in January before he was dropped for the Sri Lanka Tests. During his recent spell with Sussex, the 34-year-old batter notched up four 100-plus scores, including two double hundreds, in five county championship division two matches.
Pujara amassed an unbeaten 201 against Derbyshire, before scoring 109 against Worcestershire. He also smashed 203 and 170 not out against Durham and Middlesex. Overall, he gathered 720 runs, forcing the selection committee to give him a call-up for the England Test.
As Pujara looks to continue his stellar form in England, former India batter Mohammad Kaif has lavished praise on the seasoned batter, underlining how he turned things around. Playing for Saurashtra in the Ranji Trophy, Pujara had also hit 91 against Mumbai and 64 not out against Goa. For India, he has scored 6713 runs at 43.87 in 95 Test matches.
"You can learn so much from Pujara. If you get dropped, what do you have to do as a batter? You go back to the county, you go back to Ranji and you score runs and runs and I mean, score tons and tons of runs. He has done that," Kaif told NDTV during a media interaction.
Kaif also backed Pujara to bat at his usual No. 3 batting spot in the upcoming Test. The BCCI had recently shared a clip of Rohit and Shubman Gill practising in the nets, hinting that the pair will be opening in Birmingham.
"He's an example for any young player who has been dropped and how to make a comeback. Probably, you should go back to Pujara and see what he has done in the last couple of months. He has been a fantastic player for India also. And I think he'll play No. 3 for India," said Kaif.
