Karsan Ghavri hails Cheteshwar Pujara for giving bowlers sizeable total to defend

12/12/2018

Hailing Cheteshwar Pujara's batting heroics in Adelaide, Karsan Ghavri has stated that the No.3 batsman was the prime architect behind the historic win. Ghavri has also warned India that despite having an upper hand, they should be wary about the Australian fightback which is very much possible.

The Australian tailenders gave India a nightmare for an hour or two on the final day of the Adelaide Test but the visitors overcame that to secure a thrilling victory on the final day. While Ravichandran Ashwin and Ajinkya Rahane were impressive for India, at the heart of the victory was Pujara, who scored a total of 194 runs in the Test to give India a solid foundation. Ghavri, who had been a long-time mentor for Pujara, has stated that the Saurashtra boy was excellent in the first Test.

“Cheteshwar Pujara is the wall (of Indian cricket) after Rahul Dravid. He is the Indian wall like the China Wall (referring to the Great Wall of China). His wicket is a very prized one in Test cricket. Like when Rahul Dravid used to play, his wicket was a prized wicket for the opposition. Today Indian cricket can depend on him and as long as he delivers the goods, it’s great for Indian cricket,” said the 67-year-old Ghavri.

“Personally I feel we have won this Test in Australia in Adelaide because of Pujara, his great performance. He gave Indian bowlers (something) to bowl at as you require runs on the board. His contribution was sizable,” said Ghavri, who was the senior in his new ball partnership with the legendary Kapil Dev.

Despite having odds stacked against them, Australia fought hard before conceding the match to India. This became only India’s sixth Test win Down Under, and for the first time, the tourists took a 1-0 lead in a Test series in Australia. While Ghavri agreed that the home team didn’t have the firepower, he believes that the hosts still can make a comeback in the series.

“I am sure they (Australia) are missing Steve Smith and David Warner, as they were the main run-getters for Australia in the last couple of years. We are up 1-0 in Australia right now and there are three more Tests to go. But I will not be surprised (if) there will be a big fight on the field from the Australian team.

“They (Australia) will fight back. But I can tell you we (India) have an upper hand. We have an advantage of being a great team,” the former speedster added.

Both the teams will square off for the second Test from December 14 at the new Perth Stadium.