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'Talks happen outside': Rohit Sharma lauds Cheteshwar Pujara, says there were no concerns in dressing room over his form
After the end of the play on Friday, India opener Rohit Sharma, who also scored a fifty, praised Pujara, and said that there were no doubts over his form inside the dressing room.
India batsman Cheteshwar Pujara silenced his critics on Friday when he scored an unbeaten 91 runs in 180 balls on Day 3 of the third Test against England. Pujara has faced questions over his slow scoring rate. But on Day 3, the right-handed batsman showcased he can score runs at a quicker pace, hitting 15 boundaries in his innings.
Pujara's classy batting helped India finish strong on Day 3 with total of 215/2, trailing England by 139 runs. After the end of the play on Friday, India opener Rohit Sharma, who also scored a fifty, praised Pujara, and said that there were no doubts over his form inside the dressing room.
"To be honest there hasn't been any talk about Pujara's batting. I think the talks are only happening outside. Not a single conversation has happened with Pujara regarding his form inside the team dressing room. We know the quality he brings, we know the experience he brings. When you have a guy like that, I don't think there needs to be much discussion," Rohit said in a reply to a query from ANI at the virtual press conference.
"If you talk about his recent performance, yes I mean he has not scored runs but we saw a crucial partnership between him and Ajinkya at Lord's. Not to forget what he did in Australia. Those were crucial innings for us winning that historic Test series in Australia. We tend to forget, our memories are a little bit short," he added.
Rohit further said that fans need to consider the contribution made by a player for many years when criticising a player like Pujara.
"We need to think about what the guy has done over the years. It is not about one or two innings or one or two series. It's about what he has done in his entire career.
"I understand current form, but the current form doesn't happen in one innings. Over a number of years he has done well, and that needs to be considered when we talk about someone like him," Rohit said.
"He definitely came with an intent to score runs. This innings of ours was never about survival. Our intent was to score runs, and Pujara clearly showed that. The way he got off the mark and then carried on from there. Anything loose, he was ready to pounce. Shows that he had an intent in his batting.
"That really helps when you have that sort of intent: any loose deliveries will not be spared. With Pujara we have seen over the years that he is a very disciplined batter. Yes of late runs haven't come but that doesn't mean that the quality of Pujara is gone missing, the quality is always there.
"You must have seen today the way he batted. Not the easiest situation to bat when you are 300 behind. The way he batted shows the character of the individual, and shows the mindset of an individual as well. Somebody who has gone everywhere and scored," he signed off.
