IND vs SA: Aakash Chopra Points Out Two Things That Are Hindering Cheteshwar Pujara's Batting

Cricket analyst Aakash Chopra hinted at the growth of an ‘uncanny’ pattern in Cheteshwar Pujara’s dismissals, pointing out that there are two major issues that are bugging the Saurashtran’s batting of late.

Pujara was dismissed after scoring 3 (33) in the first innings of the Johannesburg Test. His mode of dismissal was similar to the first Test where he was disturbed by the extra bounce that the Protean pitches offer.

Speaking about the dismissal on Star Sports, Chopra said: “Pujara has got a lot of patience and ability to defend as well. But two things are plaguing him. First is his intent to score runs. He is not even hitting the half volley with full might and we can an uncanny pattern in his dismissals.”

“He had nicked Ngidi’s delivery in the first innings of the Centurion Test. If we look at his hands and the height of the delivery, why is he even trying to play off the front foot instead of using the depth of the crease,” Chopra mentioned.

“He needs to find the intent to score” – Aakash Chopra

Although the surface in Johannesburg is quite tough to bat on due to the bounce, Pujara never showed any intent to disturb the bowlers’ length. He was quite content to defend during the entire knock and it was only a matter of time before he fell to a delivery he cannot control.

“If you are always lunging forward with low hands, bowlers are going to enjoy bowling against you on South African pitches. Extra bounce, low hands, lunging forward… that’s a recipe for disaster,” Chopra added.

Along with Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane also failed miserably as he fell for a golden duck. It was the first time in his Test career that he was dismissed on the very first delivery he faced.

Also Read – IND vs SA: Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane Probably Have Next Innings To Save Their Test Careers – Sunil Gavaskar