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India’s former Test specialist Cheteshwar Pujara has recalled the time when Australian players were sledging about his batting style and told him that he would never be picked by an IPL team. However, Pujara’s IPL journey got a surprising twist in 2021 when Chennai Super Kings brought him.
The Saurashtra batter was picked at his base price of ₹50 lakh by the Chennai Super Kings at the auction, and the moment caught a lot of attention. It was a big achievement for Pujara. Earlier, S Badrinath takes dig at Gautam Gambhir over all-rounder obsession.
Cheteshwar Pujara reveals shocking Australian sledge over his IPL career
Cheteshwar Pujara was bought by CSK for ₹50 lakh at the 2021 IPL auction. With this, the former Indian batter made his return to the IPL after last playing in the 2014 edition. The Chennai Super Kings bid received a huge round of applause at the auction.
It was a special moment for Pujara after years of being known mainly for his Test cricket. The former Indian batter recalled how the Australian players had slugged him during the 2018 and 2020-21 series tours about his defensive batting style, and because of this, he could not get the IPL opportunity.
Pujara later felt that his return to the IPL was a strong answer to those sledges. He told Aakash Chopra on his YouTube channel, "In 2018 and even in the 2020-21 series, many times I used to get that sledge from Australian players. 'You won't get a chance in the IPL if you bat like this.'" ' When it happened, I wanted to go back to that Aussie player and tell him that you will get that reward even by performing well in Test cricket.”
No match for CSK, yet Cheteshwar Pujara calls 2021 IPL experience incredible
Pujara was part of CSK’s squad during their successful 2021 campaign, but he did not get a single match. Despite warming the bench, Pujara said that getting a chance to experience a winning team environment was special for him, and the experience was incredible.
The former Indian batter further explained, “I was very pleased and happy that I got that opportunity. It was good to be in the IPL environment again, and fortunately, CSK won the trophy that year. I also got to know about that environment. It is an achievement.” Amid this, Rahul Dravid names greatest international captain.
Have learnt a lot: Cheteshwar Pujara
Cheteshwar Pujara added, “I might not have played a game for CSK, but even being in the environment, seeing things like how the team is doing better, which players have contributed, and how the management is managing the team. My contribution to the team winning the title may not be even one percent, but you are in that winning environment, and you learn a lot.”
Notably, Pujara has also played for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings), and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the IPL during his playing career. The former right-hander has scored 390 runs at a strike rate of 99.74 across 22 innings in the world’s biggest T20 league.
