“He got his mojo back” – Wasim Jaffer says Cheteshwar Pujara to get a longer rope after success in first Test against Bangladesh

Former India cricketer Wasim Jaffer has hailed Cheteshwar Pujara for his exceptional performance in the Chattogram Test against Bangladesh, which India won by 188 runs to go 1-0 ahead in the series. He believes that the right-hander has become a strong contender to stay in the side for a long time after scoring 90 and an unbeaten 102.

Speaking on ESPNCricinfo, Jaffer said:

“He did the hard yards, went to county cricket, and scored lots of runs. Whenever he gets an opportunity, he turns up for Saurashtra."

"It’s a good thing that he got his mojo back and got that hundred which he didn’t had for 3-4 years. He is going to be there around. He’s not going anywhere.”

For the uninitiated, the Saurashtra batter made a comeback for India after being dropped for the home series against Sri Lanka after poor outings against South Africa.

The 34-year-old made his comeback against England, where he scored 13 and 66, but it was his success for Sussex in County Championship Division Two (1094 runs) and the Royal London One Day Cup (624 runs) that made him favorites to be picked the for two Tests against Bangladesh.

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“He played some really decent knocks in between that” – Wasim Jaffer on Cheteshwar Pujara

Jaffer pointed out that Pujara has been a consistent run scorer despite the fact that he scored his 19th ton after a gap of 52 innings. He also credited him for delivering during the India tour of Australia in 2020/21, where he scored 271 runs in four Tests, including three half-centuries.

He said:

“Even though he didn’t make a hundred for three or four years, he managed to put on some decent scores consistently. There were 60s-the 70s, knocks where he battled really hard. In the Brisbane Test, he took blows to his body. There were no three-figure marks. So, I thought he played some really decent knocks in between that.”

It’s worth mentioning that Pujara scored 1,456 runs in 51 innings between his 18th and 19th ton. He will look to continue his purple patch in the upcoming second Test in Dhaka, which starts on Thursday, December 22.