After all that brilliant bowling to the Indian top-order, the Australian bowlers were tired of bowling to Cheteshwar Pujara, who was in no mood of giving up, but it was the brilliant fielding effort of Pat Cummins helped the hosts to dismiss the batsman at the end of Day 1 of the first Test between India and Australia at Adelaide on Thursday.
Pujara had brought up his century and was looking to carry on for much longer, but was run out thanks to an athletic effort from Cummins, made all the more spectacular by the fact that the pacer had bowled 19 overs by that point.
The nature of his throw was very appreciated as Cummins picked up the ball and released the ball in a singular motion while diving and that effort even led to the Major League Baseball’s official website running an article on how the Australian quick would be a good fit for the sport.
WATCH – Pat Cummins’ Brilliant Fielding To Dismiss Cheteshwar Pujara
Here is the video of the dismissal:
Unreal. This is simply stunning from @patcummins30, especially after sending down 19 rapid overs on a blazing hot Adelaide day!#AUSvIND | @Toyota_Aus pic.twitter.com/APvK1GYBRd
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) December 6, 2018
The article states that Cummins’ effort in the field “translates almost perfectly to baseball” and calls him a “potential future MLB third baseman”. For the uninitiated, a third baseman is the baseball player whose job it is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner needs to touch in succession in order to score a run.
For a third baseman, good reflexes are a must, as he has to react to batted balls and he is often the closest infielder to the batter. This position also requires a strong and accurate arm as the third baseman often makes long throws to first base.
WATCH – Cheteshwar Pujara Reveals His Recovery Process
Australia legend Shane Warne joked on Fox Cricket before the start of play that MLB’s potential interest in Cummins could cause some trouble for Cricket Australia in the future. Cummins is currently in negotiations with Cricket Australia for a long-term deal after former high-performance manager Pat Howard offered Cummins a one-year deal before he was dismissed.
