The No. 3 position remained a problem area for India during the Border-Gavaskar trophy in Australia, where a 3-1 defeat underscored the team’s struggle to put enough runs on the board.
Throughout the five-match series in Australia, Team India experimented with several batters at the No. 3 position, but Devdutt Padikkal, Shubman Gill, and KL Rahul all struggled to make an impact with their below-par performances.
Amidst this, one name that kept surfacing was that of Cheteshwar Pujara—India’s rock at No. 3 for over a decade.
As India now prepares for their next red-ball challenge—a five-Test series in England starting in June—Pujara has made his intentions clear. “I'm playing domestic cricket. If given a chance, I'm ready to grab it with both hands. The hunger is even more. When you are older, you need to work even harder,” he said at the Tata Steel Trailblazers 3.0 conclave in Kolkata.
The seasoned batter’s contributions to Indian cricket are undeniable. In India’s historic first-ever Test series win in Australia (2018-19), Pujara was the backbone of the batting lineup, amassing 521 runs and, more significantly, facing 1,258 deliveries to wear down the Australian attack.
“Australia are the toughest when it comes to Test cricket. India never likes to lose to Australia. That’s why 2018 was like winning the World Cup. It was the biggest achievement of my Test career,” he reflected.
He also recalled the 2020-21 series triumph, where India repeated history with a remarkable comeback.
Speaking about his current training regimen, Pujara revealed that he has been facing left-arm seamer Kuldeep Sharma, a long-time friend from his U-19 days, on a cement pitch from a shortened distance of 16-18 yards to prepare for pace and movement.
Looking ahead to the England series, Pujara was optimistic about India’s chances. “We have the bowling. We need to put runs on the board. And we have the players to do that. We have to respect the bowling and the conditions. I won’t say that we don’t have a chance.”
On the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy final, he backed India as favourites against New Zealand while dismissing talks of any ‘home advantage’ in Dubai.
“I don’t think so. The schedule was put out before the start of the tournament. The tournament is being played in a hybrid model because India couldn’t go to Pakistan due to security reasons,” said Pujara.
