Cheteshwar Pujara's batting exploits during the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2018-19 down under will forever remain fresh in the memories of cricket lovers.
Such was his brilliance that he is still giving nightmares to the Australian fast bowlers. On Saturday (April 15), speedster Pat Cummins recalled Pujara’s heroics in that four-Test series and termed him the toughest batsman to bowl to in the longest format of the game.
Cummins was asked which batsman he found toughest to bowl to during a live Question-Answer session that was arranged by the Australian Cricketers Association (ACA).
To which, the pacer replied: "There are a lot of them out there, unfortunately. But I am going to go with someone different, and he is (Cheteshwar) Pujara from India. He was a real pain in the back for us."
Pujara was instrumental in India’s first-ever Test series triumph on Australia soil. He was the leading run-getter in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2018-19 with 521 runs at an average of 74.72 including three centuries.
India’s eminent No. 3 scored hundreds in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney to script India’s twin victories in the series. While he amassed 123 in the Test series opener, he notched up the scores of 106 and 193 in the third and fourth Test respectively.
Cummins also remembered how hard it was for the Australian team to dislodge Pujara in the last series.
"He (Pujara) was an absolute rock for them in that series. (He was) Really hard to get out. Just ultra concentration all day, day after day. He is the hardest one in Test cricket so far, I think," he remarked.
