Good to have the record out of way: Ashwin
Internet Desk: Indian top order batsman Cheteshwar Pujara thinks the tagline of calling him “Test specialist” will change soon after he scored a crucial half-century in quick time against Bangladesh on Sunday.
In last year’s auction Pujara was not picked by any of the franchises. But today the Saurashtra batsman played like a terminator, as he scored a blistering half-century in the second innings and at many times he was looking more vulnerable than his skipper Virat Kohli, said he now has various types of shots in his kitty which has helped him change his game in limited overs format.
With IPL auctions slated next Monday, Pujara said: “I am very hopeful that perception (Test player) will change. I have recently got a T20 hundred in a DY Patil tournament and probably I am batting more freely now. I have added few shots in my game, which is helping me.
“Even in Test format, the way I am striking the ball, the way I am batting, few series, I have changed my game which is helping me in T20 and ODI game. In near future, I think things will change,” he seemed confident.
Pujara was seen hooking fast bowler Taskin Ahmed for a six and he said that it was the demand of the situation.
“As I said, we wanted to accelerate and bat for a session. There is a perception that I can’t play too many shots. If you look at domestic cricket and overall that I have played, this was one of the occasions that gave me an opportunity to express myself and I did that.
“It was a situation, where I could play freely, take some risks and play my shots. Because when it comes to Test cricket, you still have to put a prize on your wicket and when you are playing in first innings, you don’t want to play any rash shot, get out and put the team in trouble. This was an opportunity where we had to bat for one session and even if I get out, we had batsmen who can come in and accelerate.”
India had an option of enforcing follow-on but Pujara said that bowlers needed rest after bowling 127 plus overs.
“Since we fielded for more than 100 overs, the idea was to give bowlers a break for a session so that they can recover and come back fresh. When I went into bat, we planned to score as many as runs as possible. We were looking at 150 to 200 runs on the board. We wanted to express ourselves. I was batting freely. I knew that I will have to keep hitting the ball and ultimately I am happy with the way things went,” he said.
On the other hand, having become the quickest to reach 250 wickets in Test cricket, India’s premier off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin today said it was “good to have the record out of the way”.
Playing in his 45th Test match, Ashwin achieved the feat when he dismissed Bangladesh skipper Mushfiqur Rahim in the first session of the fourth and penultimate day of the one-off Test here, surpassing Australian fast bowling great Dennis Lillee, who had reached the milestone in 48 matches.
“Good to have the record out of the way,” he said after the end of day’s play.
“Today was one of those days when I started enjoying my spell right from the start. It’s going to be an interesting day tomorrow. The wicket is not giving too much help for the spinners, we have to be very very patient in the morning session,” Ashwin said.
“It was a delight to bowl in the second innings. I was a little rusty in the first innings, got into a better rhythm in the second innings straightaway, bowling with the new ball.”
He is the sixth Indian bowler after current coach Anil Kumble (619), Kapil Dev (434), Harbhajan Singh (417), Zaheer Khan (311), Bishan Singh Bedi (266) to take 250 Test wickets.
With inputs from PTI.