Australia vs India 2018: MCG Pitch’s Variable Bounce Will Be Tough For Australia - Cheteshwar Pujara
Updated - 27 Dec 2018, 06:44 PM
Indian National Cricket Team cricketer Cheteshwar Pujara believes that Australia will have to go through a tough phase in the next three days because of the variable bounce at MCG. However, the right-hander was the lone centurion from the Indian team who notched his 17th Test hundred against Australia. He took 319 balls to score 106 runs with the help of ten boundaries.
Pujara on MCG pitch’s variable bounce
Meanwhile, India batted for almost two days scoring 443 runs with the loss of seven wickets before declaring. It took 169.4 overs to score the runs with a run rate of 2.60. However, while speaking to reporters after the second day’s play, Pujara felt India had an outstanding total on the board given the uneasy nature of the pitch. He also explained the situation he had to face while batting against the Aussies bowlers.
“I think so. It’s a tough wicket to score runs on. The first two days, if you look at the number of runs scored, it’s very less, but to score 200 in a day is a tough task. I think we have enough runs on the board and as we saw today the pitch has already started deteriorating. There’s variable bounce on it. When I was batting on it yesterday, and today I felt there was a difference, and I don’t think its easier to bat now.” Cheteshwar Pujara said.
Moreover, the 32-year-old said that the batsman needs to face a lot of deliveries to get set on the pitch. Pujara also added that he would have reached the landmark of crossing 150 plus if those couple of wickets had not fallen in quick times.
“You have to bat as per the wicket and the situation. On this wicket, each batsman had to play a lot of balls to get set. It was tough. If those couple of wickets had not fallen, I could have gone on to get 140-150 at the least, but that’s what Test cricket is about. You have to gauge the pitch and the situation and bat accordingly.” Pujara further added.
Cheteshwar Pujar so far had slammed two centuries and one half-century from five innings that he has played. In addition to, he also scored 328 runs from five essays. He is looking forward to retaining his form and deliver the best for his nation.
“It has been a good tour for me, personally, but the biggest thing is that this Test remains very important for us,” he concluded.
