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Veteran Indian cricketer Dinesh Karthik reckons Cheteshwar Pujara deserved the Player of the Match award for his two magnificent knocks against Bangladesh in the first Test in Chattogram. He also feels Pujara's return to form bodes well for India ahead of facing Australia in February.
Pujara, the mainstay of India's batting unit in Tests for over a decade, broke his nearly four-year drought in the second innings against Bangladesh as he scored an unbeaten 102. The veteran batter came close in the first innings, but fell for 90, bowled by left-arm spinner Taijul Islam.
Speaking on Cricbuzz chatter, Karthik felt the two knocks in Chattogram from Pujara, including an uncharacteristic hundred came in crunch moments. Hence, he deserved the Player of the Match award.
"To be fair, he got two crunch knocks. The first one came when India were under a little bit more pressure. He and Shreyas had a lovely partnership. He scored a hundred in the second innings, albeit a very un-Pujara innings. The speed at which he played was great to watch and it was his personal fastest hundred. So, he deserved to be the man of the match."
The Saurashtra batter's last Test ton before scoring one against Bangladesh came against Australia in January 2019. He also faced the axe ahead of the two-Test series at home against Sri Lanka earlier this year due to an underwhelming display in South Africa, averaging only 20.67 in three Tests.
"If he gets going, it gives you a certain stability" - Dinesh Karthik on Cheteshwar Pujara
Karthik also termed Pujara's runs as a fixed deposit, given the stability he provides and his history of doing well against Australia. The 37-year-old added:
"Pujara's runs are a certain fixed deposit and a nice metaphor to use because the chances of it going wrong are very less and if he gets going, it gives you a certain stability. People can bat at good strike rates around and he is a thorn in the flesh. Even in Australia, how he troubles the Australian bowlers. Hence, it's a good sign moving towards the Australia series and the WTC final if Pujara can keep his form and keep churning out runs like this Test match."
The 34-year-old will look to notch more runs in the second Test in Mirpur to help India prevail and remain in the hunt for the WTC final spot.
