5 Defiant Cheteshwar Pujara Innings

Cheteshwar Pujara is India’s best Test batsman at the moment, without any doubt. The way he is churning up runs consistently shows his hunger and determination to succeed in the more demanding version of the game.

Pujara is not someone who can intimidate the opposition with his aggression. He is not someone who can bash the bowlers according to his own sweet will. However, he is a defiant, determined and gritty customer who tires up the opposition mentally.

We have witnessed him producing some of the best defiant and match-defining knocks of all time since his debut in 2010. He has quickly, in my opinion, filled the boots of Rahul Dravid - ‘The Wall' of Indian cricket.

Pujara now has 3966 Test runs to his name at an average of 52.18. That record also includes a total of 12 hundreds and 15 fifties.

Come 3rd August 2017, Pujara will complete his first major milestone as he will be playing his 50th Test match for India. Let us now have a look at five of those defiant innings from Cheteshwar Pujara that occupy a special place in our hearts.

#1) 135 | 2nd Test, England tour of India at Mumbai, Nov 23-Nov 26

It was the second Test of the four match series and India were already in the driving seat after winning the first Test.

However, England were determined to turn things around at Mumbai. They produced a superb bowling display and reduced the Indian batting lineup to 169/6 in the first innings. But, there was one man holding the fort at one end searching for an able partner. He was none other than Cheteshwar Pujara.

He had already stitched partnerships of 48 runs with Virender Sehwag, 58 runs with Virat Kohli and 50 runs with MS Dhoni. However, he needed someone who would walk the long road with him.

In walked Ravichandran Ashwin and he provided the support that Pujara needed at the other end. Pujara kept grinding the bowling and continued to frustrate the English bowlers.

Ashwin at the other end was scoring runs at a brisk rate. With his help, Pujara made his way to a fabulous inning of 135 runs off 350 deliveries. His stay at the crease amounted to 451 minutes and India were bowled out soon after his dismissal for 327 runs.

England replied strongly with a total of 413 runs. India, under pressure, were bowled out for a paltry 142 runs in the second innings. England went on to chase down the target of 57 runs with all 10 wickets remaining. Although India went on to lose the match, Pujara’s knock of 135 will always be remembered as one of his best innings.

#2) 145* , 3rd Test, India tour of Sri Lanka at Colombo, Aug 28-Sep 1, 2015

Pujara’s 145* will go down as one of the best innings played by an Indian batsman in India-Sri Lanka cricket rivalry.

It was the decider of the three match Test series level at 1-1. Sri Lanka had made a strong start as they claimed wickets at regular intervals and reduced India to 173/6. They got the better of every Indian batsman, but not Pujara. He kept the scoreboard ticking and also held up one end. He also stitched together some small but important partnerships of 50 with Virat Kohli, 55 with Rohit Sharma and 54 with Naman Ojha.

However, the real turning point came when he combined with Amit Mishra to build a partnership of 104 runs to take India to a strong position. Mishra also fell after a match defining knock of 57 runs.

Pujara, however, remained unbeaten on 145 (289) until the end like a lone warrior. But he had already taken India to a safe total of 312 runs in the first innings.

As a result of his fabulous innings, India went on to win the match by 117 runs and also won the series 2-1 after a long wait. Pujara’s 145* will go down as one of the best innings played by an Indian batsman in India-Sri Lanka cricket rivalry.

#3) 87, 2nd Test, New Zealand tour of India at Kolkata, Sep 30-Oct 3, 2015

Pujara ensured that they don’t lose any more wickets as he went into a defensive mode guarding his wickets like a soldier guarding a castle.

It wasn’t a big hundred that we are accustomed to seeing from Pujara. However, his knock of 87 runs off 219 deliveries helped India to clinch the series title in the second Test match of the 3-match series.

India had lost Shikhar Dhawan, Murali Vijay and Virat Kohli and were struggling at a poor score of 46/3. However, Pujara ensured that they didn’t lose any more wickets as he went into a defensive mode guarding his wickets like a soldier guarding a castle.

He got able support from Ajinkya Rahane and stitched together a partnership of 141 runs for the for the fourth wicket. The interesting fact is that 78.16 percent of his runs came in boundaries, which amounted to a total number of 17.

That sums up the number of dot balls he played. However, that mattered the least in the context of the game as it got India on to a safe position. India scored 316 runs in that innings and later went on to win the match by 178 runs as a result of a superb bowling display.

#4) 92, 2nd Test, Australia tour of India at Bengaluru, Mar 4-Mar 7, 2017

It was Pujara’s defiant innings that made the difference between an Australian and Indian victory and helped India level the match series 1-1.

This was again one of those innings which did not necessarily go down among Pujara’s glorious centuries. He fell only eight runs short of a truly deserved century when he waged a lone battle against a roaring Australian bowling unit.

He compensated for his failure in the first innings with this fabulous knock of 92 off 221 deliveries in the second innings.

India were bowled out for 189 runs in their first innings and Pujara had contributed only 17 of those. Australia in reply had posted 276 runs and India needed to produce something special on a difficult track to bat.

Each of the Indian batsmen failed again except Pujara (92) and Rahane (52). Their innings propelled them to a total of 274 runs and thus India set a target of 188 runs for Australia to chase.

Australia were eventually bowled out for 112 runs as a result of a superb bowling display from India. However, it was Pujara’s defiant innings that made the difference between an Australian and Indian victory and helped India level the match series 1-1.

#5) 202, 3rd Test, Australia tour of India at Ranchi, Mar 16-Mar 20, 2017

Pujara’s knock was not only monumental but was also an epic one.

Pujara’s best knock couldn’t have come at a better time than in one of the most fierce cricket rivalries that history has ever witnessed. A double century against a powerful Australian bowling line-up is always special. However, Pujara’s knock was not only monumental but also an epic one.

He faced 525 deliveries for his 202 runs and thus became the batsman to face the most number of deliveries in an innings in Indian Test history. His innings was also very important in the context of the game as Australia had piled up 451 runs in their first innings.

As a result of Pujara’s mammoth knock, India made their way to 603/9 before declaring their innings. It consumed a whole 4 days of the match. The match ultimately got drawn with Australia ending up with a second innings score of 204/6 on the final day.

Although the match didn’t produce any result of consequence, it did keep the series alive and most of the credit goes to Pujara’s innings.