Cheteshwar Pujara: The understated guitarist in an ensemble of dominant drummers

When one of the most accomplished pacers of the generation, Josh Hazlewood, said, 'I am pretty happy that Pujara isn't here', before the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, it took everyone concerned by surprise. For starters, an Aussie bowler showcasing vulnerability towards an opposition batter he is about to encounter is as rare as rain in a desert.

Here was a case of a veteran bowling spearhead of the home side being relieved at the absence of a Cheteshwar Pujara in a team boasting superstars like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Rishabh Pant, among others. Yet, in many ways, it sums up what the defiant batter's international career was all about - a silent and often underappreciated warrior in an era of Indian cricket full of slam-bang artists.

Deciphering Pujara and his actual impact is an exercise as nuanced as the musical notes in a superhit song. At the surface level, the 37-year-old got labelled as a regressive and old-fashioned fighter struggling for every run in a free-stroking and six-hitting generation.

Yet, there was always more to Pujara than meets the eye on a cricketing field. As he announces his retirement and waves goodbye to Indian cricket, it is time to pay the ultimate tribute to a man who often endured more than what was warranted and received less than what he deserved.

Pujara's toughest challenge: Cultural differences and misconceptions over opposition bowlers

By the time Cheteshwar Pujara debuted for India in the home Test series against Australia in 2010, there was little doubt about his ability to survive and ultimately thrive against the red ball. Yet, unlike most Indian cricketers, the Saurashtra batter had much more to overcome than only the opposition bowlers.

With the cricketing paradigm rapidly shifting towards the thrill-a-minute T20 format in the 2010s, Pujara's accumulative and technically orthodox method of batting fell out of favor even among Indian fans. Even former Indian players and his own support staff occasionally questioned Pujara's relatively conservative batting style.

The numbers rarely let the right-hander down as he continued to be a model of consistency almost throughout his career. However, Team India needed a scapegoat when things did not go to plan and when they underachieved.

Pujara's batting tempo was the easiest target in such instances, and the good-natured batter never hit back. And finally, after the long grind, he showcased in style why 'Balls over Runs', 'Time over Score', and 'Blockball over Bazball' triumph in the most challenging circumstances.

Pujara's historic conquests concurrently crushed and stirred souls

Cheteshwar Pujara was attempting to win two battles in one throughout his lengthy Test career- thwarting the opposition and silencing the naysayers. After years of grind, the rarely headline-dominating right-hander conquered something few Indian legends have come close to in their illustrious careers - Australia.

If Australia's mantra in the 2000s was all about achieving their 'Final Frontier', a Test series win in India, the reverse was just as true for even longer. Despite coming tantalizingly close on occasions in the 2000s, Team India's dream of winning a red-ball series down under remained a seemingly distant dream.

Finally, as the 2018-19 Australian tour arrived, Pujara decided to once and for all conquer past demons and change perceptions. The resolute batter compiled one of the most extraordinary displays of batsmanship on hostile Australian soil to help India achieve the improbable feat of a Test series win down under.

Pujara was the easy choice for Player of the Series honors, scoring 521 runs at an average of 74.42 with three centuries. Each minute at the crease had Aussie souls crushed before their eventual surrender.

The subsequent 2020/21 tour of Australia saw Pujara back to being Pujara - 'The understated guitarist in an ensemble of dominant drummers'. His impact was just as much, even if the 271 runs at an average of 33.87 were never going to dominate the limelight in this 'Style over Substance' era of Indian cricket.

Nevertheless, by being the spearhead of India's first-ever series win in Australia, Pujara stirred the handful of souls among Indian fans who realized his value long before the tangible and historic outcome.

How Pujara fell under the classic 'Missing the forest for the trees'

Far too often, batters conveniently earn their titles through aesthetics and overall numbers. While Pujara's overall Test numbers were nothing to sneeze at, it was the finer details that defined the veteran's impact on the side.

Let us get the overall numbers out of the way - 7,195 runs at an average of 43.60, including 19 centuries, in 103 Tests. Pujara is in the top 10 for most runs and centuries among Indian batters.

Yet, rarely does the Saurashtra batter get mentioned in the upper echelon of Indian batting greats in Tests, thanks to his prioritizing orthodoxy over flamboyance. The difference in Pujara's averages in Indian wins to losses is that of the Pacific Ocean.

The champion batter averaged 50.66 in 58 Indian Test victories and only 27.24 in the 27 defeats. Pujara also boasted an impressive average of 53.72 in 18 draws. Team India's winning percentage in the 103 Tests Pujara played reads a remarkable 56.31. For context, their overall Test winning percentage is only 32.49 in 594 games.

Furthermore, very few batted time like Pujara, evidenced by his incredible average of over 98 balls per completed innings in Tests. While his overall balls faced in Tests is sixth all-time among Indian batters, the balls per innings figure is fourth, behind only Rahul Dravid, Sunil Gavaskar, and Sachin Tendulkar.

For context, Virat Kohli, widely regarded as India's best Test batter of the generation, averaged 84.30 balls per completed innings. Most cricketing fans have yet to come to grips with the fact that the value of a top-three batter in the order is reflected more by the balls faced than runs scored.

Weathering the new ball and enabling the middle order to prosper gets mentioned as the key for a top-order Test batter, more for lip service. When the rubber meets the road and discussions about all-time legends take place, parameters like batting averages, strike rates, and aesthetics continue to hold precedence.

As a result, batters in Pujara's mold get undervalued in an era where failed aggression gets celebrated more than defiant resistance.

Pujara signs off as homemade food in a restaurant-friendly Test era

How many of us have waited patiently to escape the daily homemade food for the more dazzling restaurant dishes? And yet, when eating in hotels becomes a daily affair, how many have strived desperately for food cooked at home? An educated guess for both questions would be a unanimous 'All of us'.

It would be safe to mention Cheteshwar Pujara among the first names in the 'homemade food' section of an era often waiting for an outside meal. The 37-year-old became an all-too-easy punching bag for batters without a proverbial 'bag' in terms of strokeplay.

Innovations and improvisations came last in Pujara's dictionary, and even Indian fans were found frustratingly pointing at everything missing in his repertoire. Yet, as time would have it, Pujara's importance was felt more in the last two years of his absence than the 13 years he toiled tirelessly for the more crowd-pleasing batters to succeed.

The veteran missed the entire 2023-25 WTC cycle, and the immediate outcome was India missing the final for the first time in tournament history. In addition, they suffered an embarrassing 0-3 series whitewash at home to New Zealand late last year.

The back-to-back Test series wins down under with Pujara as the lead act became an afterthought after India's crushing 1-3 defeat in the 2024/25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The search for a No. 3 in Tests seems never-ending with Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Sai Sudharsan, KL Rahul, and Karun Nair, among others, trying their hand and falling short over the past couple of years.

Gill averaged 37.38 in 29 innings at one-drop, while the rest combined for a dismal average of 23.15, with Kohli's 35 being the highest.

In conclusion, Pujara's Test career is a lesson in valuing what a cricketer offers rather than nitpicking a set of checklists not ticked. Unfortunately, Indian cricket and its fans may have missed the boat in celebrating the Gujarat-born batter when the opportunity presented itself.

Nevertheless, following the 'Better late than never' theory is the least that fans and true Test lovers can do until Team India strikes gold and finds a Test No. 3 half as gritty, determined, defiant, resiliant, and resolute as Cheteshwar Pujara.