India's new middle-order riches ring a warning bell for Cheteshwar Pujara

The only aspect where Cheteshwar Pujara perhaps nudges past everyone else in the Indian team is his uncanny and unwitting ability to polarize the fans.

"Let Pujara be Pujara, let Pant be Pant", a narrative that echoed in every household after that emphatic win at the Gabba has now been entirely replaced with "Let Pant be Pant but bring back KL Rahul", in a matter of months.

It's no wonder either. A batsman of Pujara's niche skillset doesn't tend to sit well in everyone's hearts. Least of all when he hasn't scored an international hundred in the last 30 months and has been struggling with depleting returns since the start of the year.

The rut has reached an extent where, when Virat Kohli, after India's defeat in the World Test Championship (WTC) final, called for the "right people with the right mindset to perform," akin to the 'fearless' white-ball setup without naming anyone, the heads (and mics) immediately turned towards Pujara.

The Test specialist was the lowest scorer among the frontline batsmen in the highly opulent game - only eight runs off 54 balls in the first innings and just 15 runs off 80 balls in the second essay. Moreover, he consumed 35 deliveries for his first run, which, although typically valiant of him, cost India some much-needed momentum without any tangible compensation.

But it wasn't the first time, right? So what's all this fuss about?

Hitherto, India's messaging about Pujara was rather coherent. He was, as Kohli also reiterated multiple times, India's 'most valuable' player alongside vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane. The team management always backed him and his batting style through all his blips and troughs, and all the criticism.

But all that has taken a hit since the final at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton. Some unusually striking signals from the team in England, along with the emergence of a new crop of middle-order bashers, suggest that the 86-Test old Pujara's place in the side might not be indispensable, after all.

KL Rahul-named sword hangs on Pujara's career?

KL Rahul averages 29.90 from 5 Tests in England.

The Indian team's widely-reported impasse with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) over the transfer of either Prithvi Shaw or Devdutt Padikkal from Sri Lanka to England came as a shock to many, including, according to some media reports, the BCCI itself.

Why would the team insist on an urgent opening substitute when it already has as many as four backup options - Mayank Agarwal, Rahul, Hanuma Vihari and Abhimanu Easwaran - available at hand?

While the initial developments suggested a lack of confidence in the new-ball-countering abilities of all four except Agarwal, some recent revelations claim that the whole logic behind holding back Vihari and Rahul for the middle-order was the team's apprehensions over Pujara's form. The Times of India reported recently:

"There are discussions going on— the possibility of Kohli moving up to the No. 3 slot and a Hanuma Vihari or KL Rahul coming into the middle-order — which could be at the cost of a Pujara. The message for the Test specialist is a simple one — change the approach or make way."

Interestingly, there seems to be backups for everyone in the England contingent, except Pujara. This also, in a way, explains how over the years the flamboyance of Indian batters has become accustomed to revolving around their prosaic number three.

Now, the management is perhaps trying to fill that void with Rahul while also alluding that they are ready to take that extra step of modifying their long-held mantra which got them this far in the inaugural WTC.

What if Mayank Agarwal scores runs?

Rahul isn't the only one competing for Pujara's place. Agarwal, who is all but certain to replace Shubman Gill in the first Test at Trent Bridge, could ruffle some plans as well.

The more runs Agarwal scores in England, the more difficult it will be for Gill to return to the top of the order, considering the latter wasn't in his best touch for the past few months either. And if Agarwal's rise is aligned with Pujara's inability to put down his marker, a hurting Indian team will almost undoubtedly thrust the prodigious Gill into the batting order, even if it comes at the cost of one of their seasoned campaigners.

Speaking to Sportskeeda after the WTC final, former selector Gagan Khoda also raved about a similar approach. He said:

“It was not meant to be like this. Shubman Gill isn’t an opener. He is like VVS Laxman, he should bat in the middle-order. India should have picked Mayank Agarwal [in the WTC final], who had only two bad Test matches."

Conversely, one can't rule out Mayank as a middle-order option either. In the Gabba Test, where Pujara scored a defiant 211-ball 56, Agarwal played his first game as a non-opener. He was going through a torrid run against the new ball in that series but in those couple of brief innings of 38 and 9 at number five and six positions, he looked like a duck in the water.

It could well be the case that while all eyes will be on Rohit Sharma, Kohli and Rahane in England, Pujara and Agarwal, batting in two different positions, will be vying to secure the same spot in the team.

Prithvi Shaw as a middle-order option?

While pundits' opinions don't usually impact team selection, it gives a hint of where the problem lies. From Vihari to Shaw and even Karun Nair, a host of players are being considered as middle-order prospects by the cricketing fraternity, all of them proffering a similar pattern.

Former Indian wicketkeeper-batsman Deep Dasgupta recently said on his YouTube channel:

"India can try Hanuma Vihari at No. 3. In the long term you can try him, you can also try Shubman. You can also think of KL but I would see him at No. 5. There are many openers and you can adjust to No. 3 if you can adjust to the mindset. Hanuma is a good option."

Former India batting coach Sanjay Bangar told Cricket.com:

“One player who is in queue for the middle order could be Karun Nair because of his Test match record and also his overall first-class numbers. Karun had one or two average Test matches, and he was sidelined.”

Former Australian spinner Bradd Hogg recently tweeted:

“If anyone was going to replace Pujara it would be Prithvi Shaw. Feel he is more suited there than opening. Has a lot of talent and long future. He is not in the tour group but a wild card choice. #EngvIND.”

The crux is simple: Pujara is out of favor for his lack of shot-making and India have a glut of replacements available on a stone's throw.

If anyone was going to replace Pujara it would be Prithvi Shaw. Feel he is more suited there than opening. Has a lot of talent and long future. He is not in the tour group but a wild card choice. #EngvIND https://t.co/8wEF82aq1A

— Brad Hogg (@Brad_Hogg) July 2, 2021

What everyone, basically - and quite wistfully - wants is someone like Kane Williamson, or for that matter Marnus Labuschagne's ability to come after the openers. Someone who can lie between a Dom Sibley and a Pant, who can play the "Test match way" while not holding back his shots at the same time. And more importantly, someone who when plays 50-odd balls, makes it count.

To be fair to him, Pujara looked close to that in his second innings in the WTC final. His footwork was nimble and most of his stint radiated of intent until he was sent packing by a stunning delivery by Kyle Jamieson.

What does Pujara need to do now?

Score runs, for a start, big runs.

These five Tests are in no way Pujara's 'last chance' in international cricket, he's too good for that. One would expect that even if he's dropped midway through the series, he won't be out of India's future plans right away.

However, what does look certain is that the management might have run out of unconditional support for his spadework. For him to get back to the immunity he once enjoyed, Pujara will need to win a few games on his own in England. He'll have to show some authority and break the "waiting for a good ball to get out" concept along the way as well.

It's also important to note that there was similar pressure on Pujara when he went to Australia - both in 2018 and 2020 - and when he made his comeback in England in 2018. He has often outperformed himself, without touching the foundation of his batting, when under the pump and it won't be a surprise if the same happens this time around.

Despite his near-identical dismissals in the past six Tests, Pujara doesn't need any major tweaks, just a small reinvention of his mindset, a new pro-active layer over his robust underpinning. India will hope that the emergence of Rahul, Agarwal and Gill, among others, as possible substitutes will be just the impetus he needs.