Matthew Hayden Names The Indian Batsman Who Has Hurt Australia Badly

Former Australian opener Matthew Hayden was one of the vital cogs of Australia’s golden generation when they were mighty hard to beat on their home soil. While Australia stands a better chance of defeating India in the upcoming four-match series, the tourists are no pushovers even without Virat Kohli in the final three Tests. Meanwhile, Matthew Hayden has named one batsman that has hurt the hosts badly.

Matthew Hayden has picked Cheteshwar Pujara as the batsman, who could significantly hurt Australia this time like he did the last time. India created history two years ago down under by winning their first Test series in Australia and while all the members contributed to the victory, the largest share goes to Cheteshwar Pujara, who earned the man of the series award.

The right-handed batsman, who batted at number three, feasted on Australia’s esteemed bowling attack and ground them to dust. Pujara remained nearly unshakable right from the first Test in Adelaide and by the time the series finished, he had scored three. The Saurashtra batsman’s run-tally amounted to 521 runs at an average of 70, something which the home side’s batsmen did not manage.

We make sure to have plenty of caffeine when it comes to watching Pujara bat: Matthew Hayden

Matthew Hayden jokingly said that while the Australians love to drink coffee, they have ensured to have plenty before watching Cheteshwar Pujara bat. The 103-Test veteran acknowledged that the right-handed batsman did hurt them to the maximum extent. Hayden added that while today is a generation that admires batsmen for their strike rate, Pujara, who has a low strike rate, could torment the opposition.

“As you know Australians love to drink coffee, and we have decided to go on a little campaign to make sure we have plenty of caffeine when it comes to watching Pujara bat. But, you know what the reality is, he hurt us badly. We are of a generation now where we are admiring people for their strike play, we are admiring people for their strike rate. Well, he is one of the few guys in Test cricket that have a strike rate of sub 45 and he can hurt you,” Hayden told in the Star Sports’ show Game Plan.

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