Indian Test specialist batsman Cheteshwar Pujara is now one of the most in-form Test batsmen in the world cricket. Inside the dressing room, Pujara is known as White Walker – the main antagonist group in the popular TV show Game of Thrones. Recently, the Indian cricketer revealed how he has got that name.
In a recent interview with bcci.tv, Pujara revealed that the off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and the trainer Shankar Basu started that trend.
Pujara revealed after scoring 193 runs in the Sydney Test, “I think Ash (R Ashwin) and Basu sir (Shankar Basu) came up with that. Some guys also came up with ‘Winter Is Coming’, instead of ‘Winter is Coming’ they’ve started saying ‘Pujara Is Coming’. It is bit of a funny way to acknowledge what I’ve done, obviously this is fun part where players are trying to make fun and at the same time enjoy what I’ve been doing.”
In the ongoing Test series on the Australian soil, Pujara has hit three centuries and currently, he is the leading run-scorer in the ongoing Test series (scored 521 runs in seven innings with the average of 74.42). After scoring 123 and 106 at Adelaide and Melbourne respectively, Pujara has scored 193 runs in the ongoing Sydney Test. However, Pujara has put the Adelaide innings on the top.
He said, “Adelaide, I would say because the first match of the series was the most important Test match. When you start off on winning note, when you are 1-0 up and then you move in the 4-match Test series, you’re always on top. You make sure, you can remain on top so I think the innings at Adelaide will still be very special for me and Test centuries are always special so MCG and SCG both are special but I would say Adelaide is the most important one for me.”
Also read: Cheteshwar Pujara’s Contract To Be Revamped After Australia Series?
When Pujara was asked what delivery he would bowl to himself, he revealed that the googly which he can’t read.
Pujara said, “He has to bowl a googly which I can’t read as a bowler I wouldn’t know if I’m bowling a googly and as a batsman, I wouldn’t know if the ball is going to spin or it will be a googly. So it has to be a mystery ball.”
After his Saurashtra teammate Ravindra Jadeja, Pujara is the only second Indian batsman to score three first-class triple centuries. When he was asked about his longest innings, he recalled the Ranchi Test innings against Australia in March 2017 when he scored 202 runs off 525 balls. He is the only Indian batsman to play the 500 or more balls in a Test innings.
Pujara said, “I think it is Ranchi where I faced more than 500 balls, I still remember that innings to bat about 5 or 6 sessions. Today, I was almost close to that but I had more runs in less number of balls. So, I think Ranchi is the longest I’ve played.”
Pujara was also asked whether he feels bad for the bowlers during his in-form period with the bat in hands, he agreed with it.
The 30-year-old Indian batsman said, “Obviously, he will be discouraged so my strength is my defence. Obviously, it has to be discouraging for a bowler if I’m defending well, if he’s trying to bowl at 150ks and if I can play that ball well, it’s his best ball. If I can defend that then he has to find another option. I think I’m winning that battle. As a batsman, I can’t feel bad but when I do, I feel bad for all bowlers.”
Here is the full video of that interview:
The other side of Cheteshwar Pujara 😎
From Game of Thrones references, an open challenge to beat him in table tennis to the silliest way he’s gotten out till date – we catch @cheteshwar1 in a never seen before avatar – by @28anand
▶️▶️https://t.co/XEWDTdjWnB pic.twitter.com/2okHsZxyJe
— BCCI (@BCCI) January 4, 2019
