Cheteshwar Pujara, a man known for his resilience and gritty attitude. The man who has been touted as the next Rahul Dravid since his early days.
Pujara is someone whose technique might not impress you that much but it surely does the job for his side.
He made his first-class debut in the 2005/06 season. To date, he has accumulated over 16000 runs at an average of 52.35.
Let’s shed some light on his limited-overs format stats. He made his List A debut in 2006. He has 4445 runs at an average of 54.20 in list A.
Cheteshwar Pujara – IPL – CSK
Everyone was in for a surprise at the 2021 IPL auctions when Chennai Super Kings opted in to buy Pujara for 50 lakhs.
The question was where will he be used? Rather, how will he be used?
It is really difficult to predict what really goes inside MS Dhoni’s head. Pujara will probably get to open or will bat first down.
It is a gamble that MSD will be willing to play given CSK has to deal with their opening batsmen problems.
They need someone who would hold the innings from one end and Pujara is just the right man for the job.
Pujara even has a hundred in the format. Even the likes of Jos Buttler and Eoin Morgan do not have a hundred yet.
He, in 2019 had become the first Saurashtra player to smash a hundred in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (100 in 61 balls).
Chennai is a team that craves the experience. So, probably Pujara will have to play the anchor role while others go for the kill.
Pujara also has the ability to play spin well. Last year CSK had a string of low scores.
With someone like Pujara in the squad, they will look to avoid that.
With all discussed, it is no surprise that MS Dhoni is a magician. You will never be able to predict his mindsets and strategies.
How Pujara will be used can only be answered once the tournament begins on April 9.
Cricket is a funny game, Will Pujara even play? Or will he be made to sit out?
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Here’s a compilation of Pujara smashing sixes : https://twitter.com/SakethAADHF/status/1362390004001955842
