Cheteshwar Pujara believes the art of defensive art of Test batting is dying but he still is a diehard fan of the longest format.

Indian batsman Cheteshwar Pujara is a Test specialist who is deemed to be the successor of ‘The Wall’ for displaying exemplary batting skills in the longest format of the game and is currently ranked No. 7 in ICC Test Rankings. He spoke about why he loves Test cricket and how the future of cricket is ODI and T20.

Pujara said on India Today Inspiration, “First of all, I do agree (On the dying art of defensive Test batting) because when I look at the modern-day youngsters, all of them want to play shots. And yes the future is obviously T20 and ODI cricket. But at the same time, I think there are still diehard Test fans and I am one of those. I always love playing Test cricket at the same time.”

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He also revealed that he would like to play the shorter formats too but he got accustomed to playing long innings since his U14 days. He has since then put a lot of effort into playing for hours and hours in the longest format.

“Yes, I would like to play T20 and ODI cricket as well. But yes when you're playing just one format, you put in a lot of hard work, you put in a lot of effort to be successful in that format. This comes from my junior days. Playing long innings and concentrating for hours and hours. It started when I started playing U14 cricket for Saurashtra. In my very first game, I was able to score a triple hundred. That is when I created the habit of playing long innings. That is when my journey started,” he said.

“So I feel if you create that habit for over a period of time then you always become successful even at the international level. When I was playing Ranji Trophy or U19, if I recollect all of those innings, if I recollect all the journey then I understand that why I am successful at the international level now,” the 32-year-old added.

(With inputs from India Today)