Pujara has been the architect of India’s numerous Test series wins over Australia.
The right-hander has played 20 Tests against Australia, scoring 1893 runs at an impressive average of 54.08, including 5 hundreds and 10 half-centuries.
While Pujara amassed 521 runs to script India’s first-ever Test series victory Down Under in 2018-19, he displayed amazing grit and resolve to score 271 runs in the triumphant Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2020-21.
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However, both the series aren’t the toughest India-Australia Test series that Pujara has been part of.
According to him, 2017 series at home, which India won 2-1, is the toughest Test series he has been part of against Australia.
"I felt it is one of the best Test victories I have been part of," Pujara told senior cricket journalists Jamie Alter and Meha Bhardwaj Alter on their YouTube channel 'Cricket Fables'.
"Each and every time you play in Australia or against Australia, they have always been a challenging team to play against. We remember the 2017 Test series which I feel was the toughest Test series I have been part of. Although it was in India, the kind of challenge they threw at us was really good, so wherever we play against Australia it has never been easy and victories are always tough to earn, so we always enjoy victories against the Australian team."
The 2017 Border-Gavaskar Trophy was tightly contested. While Australia won the first Test in Pune by 333 runs, India won the second game in Bangalore by 75 runs to level the series. The third Test in Ranchi ended in a draw before the hosts emerged victorious by 8 wickets in Dharamsala to clinch the four-Test series.
Pujara had aggregated 405 runs in that series and was the second-highest scorer of the series behind Steve Smith’s tally of 499.
Coming to his exploits in the recently held Australia tour, Pujara struggled against the Aussie pacers in the first two Tests but he made a mark with his sheer determination in Sydney and Brisbane.
His innings on the last day at the Gabba is getting appreciated a lot. Pujara had taken multiple blows on his body to ensure India stay in the chase and don't lose too many wickets. Eventually, they won the match to seal the series 2-1.
"It is one of the best series. Maybe number-wise it might not sound like a big number... it wasn’t bad... but it you compare it to the last series that I played in Australia where I scored three centuries, then yes," Pujara said.
"But if we look at this particular series, there was only one century from the Indian team and two from the Australian team in all four matches, so there were not many runs scored because the pitches were challenging. If I look at this series, it the one of the best series I have been part of considering the kind of team which we had," he further remarked.