Cheteshwar Pujara
Cheteshwar Pujara en route to 91* (Image Credit: Twitter)

Former Indian cricketer Ashish Nehra lauded Cheteshwar Pujara for his spectacular batting show in the ongoing India vs England 3rd Test encounter at Headingley. The right-handed batsman smashed unbeaten 91 runs while holding his grip to the crease till the end of day 3. Pujara, who has struggled to score a century in Tests since February 2019, was dismissed for just 1 run in the 1st innings of the match as India suffered a miserable batting collapse.

However, Cheteshwar Pujara arrived with an astonishing comeback in the 2nd innings, smacking 15 boundaries during his unbeaten score of 91. The 33-year-old also scored two crucial partnerships- one with Rohit Sharma for 82 runs for the 2nd wicket and the other an unbeaten stand of 99 with Virat Kohli for the 3rd wicket till the end of Day 3.

Ashish Nehra
Ashish Nehra (Image Credit: Twitter)

Cheteshwar Pujara Had A Positive Mindset While Batting: Ashish Nehra

Praising Pujara’s batting while speaking on Sony Sports Network, former Indian pacer Ashish Nehra said that he has never seen Pujara doing something like that before while referring to his positive mindset while batting.

“The way Pujara batted today, I’ve never seen him doing something like that before. He had a positive mindset and his gameplay is completely different. I hope he wasn’t under any kind of pressure related to his performance. I believe, it was his own thought process that I’d play this way today,” Ashish Nehra said.

Cheteshwar Pujara
Credits: Twitter

Ashish Nehra also said that if Cheteshwar Pujara continues to play with the same positive mindset, people would witness a completely different batsman in him.

“People say Pujara plays slow. It’s not about 5-10 Test matches. He has played around 90 games for India and has 6000 runs to his credit. You have achieved success with this batting style. Just leave what people are talking about, if he continues to play with the mindset he had today, you would witness a completely different Pujara,” Nehra further said.

Ashish Nehra also feels that there is a possibility that India can put pressure back on England in the ongoing Headingley Test, provided they bat for the entire day 4.

“It’s a possibility that India can bat for the entire fourth day, take a 100-150 lead and put the pressure back on England. The way the pitch has behaved this far, winning isn’t easy but you need to cross those little milestones to stay there,” Nehra further said.

Virat Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara
Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli built an unbeaten 99-run partnership on Day 3. (Image: Twitter)

With Virat Kohli unbeaten on 45 and Cheteshwar Pujara not-out at 91 on the crease, India trails by 139 runs in the 2nd innings of India vs England 2nd Test. With two days still left in the match, the Indian team is currently on the backfoot in the match and incredible batting is the only way to save the Test. England bowled out India for a mere 78 in the 1st innings. Later, they piled up 432 on the scoreboard to take a 1st innings lead of 354 runs.

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Vikas Singh Derek has been working for Cricketaddictor since February 2021. He has written over 12,000 articles for Cricketaddictor. He is a sports writer and journalist with over 5 years of experience...