Cheteshwar Pujara recalls his favourite knocks 

What's the story?

Cheteshwar Pujara opened up about his favourite shot, injuries and best moments in hi Test career as he walked down memory lane ahead of his 50th Test.

He also went on to speak about his exclusion from the XI member Test squad and the manner in which he fought for his place in the side.

Recalling his best innings in Test matches while playing for India, Pujara said, "The first Test hundred (159) against New Zealand in Hyderabad (August 2012), then the 92 against Australia in the recent Test series (in Bangalore this March)."

"It was a match-winning score and the entire series turned. And then I got a couple of double hundreds. When I score a double-hundred it is always a special feeling," he said.

Pujara also spoke about his injury and stated that recovering from his knee injuries was the toughest part of his career. He is determined to not let injuries keep him away from the sport.

In case you didn't know...

Pujara will be the second player after Ravichandran Ashwin to play their 50th test at the series against Sri Lanka.

He was dropped from the Test team after multiple low scores in 2015, but fought back all the odds and regained his spot in the Test squad soon and silenced his critics.

Pujara sustained an injury on his knee in 2009 and 2011.

Both injuries eliminated him from the Test team for six months each. However, he recovered from them and made a fantastic comeback in the Test side, which was evident from his match-winning knocks in series that followed.

The details

In the second match of the 3-match Test series against Sri Lanka, Pujara will achieve an another milestone in his Test career.

He performed consistently since his comeback in the Test team. Earlier this year, his 92 runs against Australia turned the match in favour of team India.

In the first Test match of the ongoing series against Sri Lanka, he scored 153 runs, which were a major contribution in India's 304-run win over Sri Lanka.

What's next?

Pujara will look forward to putting up an another class performance for India in the second Test. He is also 34 runs short of attaining 4000 runs in Tests, which could be another target for him in this match.

Author's take

Pujara is one of India's most dependable batsmen when it comes to the Test format.

His gradual progress in the game since his debut speaks volume about the talent he possesses and the amount of effort with which he polished his skills.

He has delivered promising performances earlier, and is expected to continue with the manner in which he boosts the overall performance of the Test side.