Chennai Super Kings batsman Cheteshwar Pujara admitted he isn’t a power-hitter but mentioned that he is keen to emulate the sedate but successful ways of stalwarts Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli on his return to the Indian Premier League.
Pujara is making a comeback to the IPL after seven years. The right-hand batsman, known more for his exploits as a Test match specialist for India, last featured in the league in 2014 when he played for Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings).
The 33-year-old, who has previously also played for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), is gearing up for IPL’s 14th edition, beginning April 9, after being picked by CSK at the auction in February via a surprise bid of INR 50 Lakhs.
Pujara has been training hard in the nets in the build-up to IPL 2021, and in a chat with ESPNcricinfo, he spoke about his approach to T20 cricket. The determined batsman said that he might not be a power-hitter but has learnt a lot on how to pace an innings by watching the likes of Kohli and Rohit go about their business all these years.
Pujara said,
I definitely think so (of expressing himself freely in the shorter formats), especially the way the white ball travels. It is just about making the mental change. I feel that mentally if you are ready to make some adjustments, you don’t need to take a lot of pressure. In Test cricket there is a lot of pressure, there is a price on your wicket. But in the shorter format, you just need to express yourself and play all the shots you can.
I am very flexible now. And one has to be in this format. There was a time where players used to choose their role, but now players have changed, their roles have changed, and the most successful are the ones who are very flexible in the way they do things.
And when it comes to strike-rate, yes, I agree that I’m not a power-hitter. But at the same time, you learn from players like Virat and Rohit, they are not purely power-hitters, but one of the best timers of the ball I have seen in the shorter formats,
he added.
Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore captains, Rohit and Kohli, depend a lot on timing the ball correctly instead of belting it across the park. They’ve been ideal anchors for their respective teams, who also accelerate brilliantly in the latter half of an innings.
Pujara has taken cues from the book of both Rohit and Kohli and will be looking to replicate their ways to try and succeed for CSK.
Pujara’s patient and slow batting in Test cricket has given the impression that he isn’t suited to the limited-overs game, an issue not helped by his poor IPL record: 390 runs from 30 matches at an average of 20.52 and strike-rate of 99.74. For India, Pujara has never played a T20I and has featured in only 5 ODIs, the last of which dates back to June 2014 against Bangladesh.
In Test cricket, however, Pujara has been a great warrior with the bat for India and has scored 6,244 runs from 85 matches at an average of 46.6. His career tally includes 18 hundreds and 29 half-centuries.
Pujara has added to his legacy as a Test match batsman in recent years by playing a pivotal role in India’s historic maiden series victory in Australia in 2018-19 and repeating that feat in the 2020-21 season.
