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Cheteshwar Pujara Took Advantage Of Loose Balls That He Got Early In His Innings: Salman Butt
Former Pakistan skipper Salman Butt said that Indian batsman Cheteshwar Pujara made most of the loose balls and punished them towards the boundary line.
Ahead of the third Test, Pujara was highly criticised for not scoring enough runs and wasting too many balls at the crease, but the Saurashtra batsman was on a different mode on Friday as he shifted his approach. Pujara scored 91 as India managed to bridge the gap between their trail and England’s lead to 139 at the end of the day.
Cheteshwar Pujara missed his hundred
Pujara first built an 82-run stand with opener Rohit Sharma and interestingly, the former scored 44 in that partnership before he was joined by skipper Virat Kohli for another big partnership, which remained unbeaten on 99.
Unfortunately, Pujara couldn’t reach his 19th Test hundred as he was plumped by Ollie Robinson at the very start of Day 4. His innings included 16 fours and Salman Butt feels the batsman played with a clear mindset and a positive attitude was seen in his innings.
Cheteshwar Pujara’s outright attitude was positive: Salman Butt
“There was clarity in Pujara’s batting on Day 3. When he first came in to bat, he got quite a few balls on his leg. Out of his first few boundaries, three were on the leg side, which he flicked towards square leg and midwicket. So, Pujara took advantage of the loose balls that he got early in his innings. His strike rotation was also impressive,” Butt said on his Youtube Channel ahead of Day 4.
“Pujara’s outright attitude was positive and mindset was clear. He wanted to play his shots. As a result, he scored runs and got his confidence back as well. Pujara shifted the pressure back to the England bowlers. If he goes on to score a big hundred, then England could be in a bit of trouble. Also, Pujara’s return to form is great news for India with two more Tests coming up,” he added.
India are leading the five-match Test series 1-0 after their emphatic 151-run win at Lord’s.
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