Cricketer Cheteshwar Pujara is known for his patient and defensive yet crucial batting, which has earned him the nickname of India’s ‘batting rock’. But test him too much, and he will retaliate.
In an interview with ESPNcricinfo, Pujara, who was one of the stars who scripted India’s incredible comeback in the Test series against Australia, says that though he is not a fan of boxing, he watches matches sometimes and understands the amount of pain they go through.
“If I’m a boxer, I want to see how much another player can punch me. Once he is done, that’s when I want to start punching back. That is my game plan. You can punch me as long as you can. Then I’ll show my punches. That is how I planned it,” Pujara said when asked if he felt Australian bowlers treated him like a punching bag.
The 33-year-old also spoke about the injuries he sustained during the tour and the pain he went through. He took 11 blows to his body—that hit him in the shoulder, ribs, finger, head (with the helmet on)—while batting in the last Test of the four-match series at the Gabba.
“The most painful one was the ball that hit my finger, because I had already got hit on that finger during practice in Melbourne and had played the Sydney Test with that little bit of pain. I was a little concerned before the game started in Sydney, but things went really well. But the moment I got hit there again in Brisbane, I was in a lot of pain. I thought I had broken my finger.
“I couldn’t hold the bat, and I couldn’t bat the way I wanted to after that blow. I had to hold the bat with four fingers, keeping the index finger off the handle,” he added.
Pujara has earlier admitted that he was not in the habit of taking pain-killers as his threshold to bear pain is high and he is used to it. Despite taking blows left, right and centre from Australian pacers, he reiterated his decision to not take pain-killers during the match as he was “charged up”.
“Sometimes when I take a painkiller, I am not the same, like I don't understand how I want to play further. It doesn't suit me much. So I told Nitin (Patel, Team India physio), I’ll bear the pain and carry on playing, because my body was warm. Although there was pain, overall I was charged up,” he told ESPNcricinfo.
Pujara came in for some criticism for his low strike-rate in Australia, but the batsman brushed it off and has reiterated that he is not bothered by it and has no intention of changing his game.
Pujara’s valiant knock of 56 played a crucial role in the final Test, building up his 114-run partnership with Shubman Gill, who scored 91 to keep India in the hunt. Wicket-keeper batsman Rishabh Pant, who scored 89, smashed the winning boundary as India successfully chased down the 328-run target in Brisbane.
