Australia vs India 2020: Josh Hazlewood reveals he might be tempted to 'Mankad' Cheteshwar Pujara

Australian speedster Josh Hazlewood has stated that he might be tempted to ‘Mankad' Cheteshwar Pujara if he gets the chance to do so when India lock horns with Australia in a 4-match Test series later this year.

Pujara tormented the Australian bowling attack when India toured the country back in 2018-19, scoring 521 runs in 4 matches at a staggering average of 74.42. He is expected to be a thorn in the flesh of the Aussies once again unless Hazlewood has a say in proceedings.

Speaking at an event, Hazlewood revealed that he wouldn't be averse to 'Mankading' Pujara if push comes to shove.

“I reckon I’ll save that one for the next time I'm bowling at Pujara.”

🗣 "I hope I don't find myself in that situation." - Meg Lanning🗣 "I reckon I'll save that one for the next time ... at Pujara." - Josh Hazlewood@gradecricketer chats with the Aussies about the Mankad 😅 pic.twitter.com/8pSpWSU8a6

— #7Cricket (@7Cricket) February 19, 2020

Back in 2018, Hazlewood had revealed that he considered Pujara's the biggest wicket in the Indian batting line-up. The 32-year-old played the waiting game to perfection and bailed India out of trouble on several occasions during their last tour to Australia.

“I probably see [Cheteshwar] Pujara as the big wicket as far as when I’m bowling, the glue that holds them together I think. He’s batted the most balls this series and scored nearly the most runs.

“I see Pujara as a big wicket and Ajinkya Rahane as well. So the Nos. 3, 4, 5 as the key wickets and we see it a bit unstable in the other parts of the order. Certainly, not all the focus is on Virat Kohli,” Hazlewood had told reporters following the Perth Test in 2018.

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Pujara hasn’t been in the best of form of late but the pitches in Australia suit his style of batting and he might find himself among the runs once again.

Meanwhile, ‘Mankading’ once again came into the spotlight after Afghanistan U19 bowler Noor Ahmad ran out Mohammad Huraira during the recently concluded U19 World Cup. That once again sparked a debate on whether the ‘’Mankad’ should be scrapped as a form of dismissal.