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"I started playing cricket at the age of eight. I played for a state team at the age of 13. Experience playing domestic circuit, working hard day in day and out is paying off now"
The snow-capped Dhauladhar Ranges loom benevolently over the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association stadium, which is set to stage the final Test of the riveting Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Much like the climate, the relations between Australia and India remain chilly on and off the field, given the Australian camp's strident posturing.
It was, therefore, not surprising that the host team's calmest member came out in strong defence of India's skipper Virat Kohli—who is under attack from the rival camp—and sought to underline the importance of the team focussing on the job ahead rather than getting drawn into any controversy.
Rueing the fact that the focus of the Australian team and media has been on creating controversy, Pujara said, when asked about the rivals attacking Kohli,“ It was really sad to read such comments. We fully support Virat. He is one of the great ambassadors of the game. I think the focus has shifted from the game, which shouldn't have happened. We are focussed on the game.”
Pujara spoke about his legendary patience—which he drew upon time and again to build big innings. He gave an insight to his pre-match preparation and brushed aside any team concerns on how the Dharamsala wicket would eventually play out, given that the stadium was hosting its first Test match.
He even brushed aside any talk of fatigue for the hosts, who will end their long home season with the forthcoming Test match. In fact, the top-order batsman even disliked discussing his upgrade to Grade A central contract. According to him, rewards were not the greatest concern at the moment.
Excerpts from the media interaction at the HPCA stadium:
On where he gets his patience from
When it comes to patience, it is all the hard work that I have put in. I started playing cricket at the age of eight. I played my first game for a state team at the age of 13. Experience playing domestic circuit, working hard day in day and out is paying off now.
On the nature of Dharamsala wicket, given the fickle weather
Looks like a good wicket. We have played enough cricket in Dharamsala to know the conditions. We'll just try to focus on things we need to, rather than worrying about how the wicket will behave. And we have played enough cricket on different pitches throughout the season. I don't think that the wicket means a lot to us. Apart from the first Test, we have played very good cricket. So, we would look to continue with that and win the series.
On managing his innings in the middle
At times, I am in that zone where things are happening for me. I am in that zone where I know how to focus on switching off and back again. I reiterate that I have been doing this in domestic cricket for a long period of time. It is helping me now. I am always confident when my preparation is good. I don't think too much when I am batting in the middle. I prefer to keep my mind blank.
On coping with fatigue at the end of a long home season
We have worked really hard on our fitness for the last one and a half years. It is the mental battle that we have to win and we are prepared for the game. We want to win this series, finish off on a good note. Fatigue shouldn't come into the picture.
On his reaction on being upgraded to Grade A central contract
It is good to be recognised. In the middle of series, we don't want to think about any contract.
On his pre-match preparations
I focus on my diet, get a good sleep, some recovery sessions and routines. I give a lot of importance to recovery.
On Australian skipper Steven Smith saying that momentum was with Australia after Ranchi draw
Not really. We were able to score more than 600 runs. At one stage, they were four down at lunch. There was only one session between lunch and tea where we didn't get a wicket. Definitely, we had an upper hand in the last game. They had to bat twice. That credit goes to our bowlers.
