Cheteshwar Pujara : Veteran Indian batsman Cheteshwar Pujara has said that the 2020-21 Border-Gavaskar series win in Australia inspired young cricketers and brought the country together.
He also said that for him it was one of the best Test series he has been a part of. Pujara played a key role in India’s victory in both the Test tours of Australia.
During Down Under in the summer of 2018-19, he was awarded the Man of the Series award for scoring 521 runs in 7 innings against the fast Australian trio of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood.
Pujara did amazing
The veteran batsman batted for 1258 balls and 30 hours during the tour, helping the Virat Kohli-led side become the first Indian team to win a Test series in Australia.
Again in the 2020-21 tour, Pujara scored 271 runs in 4 matches and played some important innings in India’s 2-1 series win.
Pujara told IANS on the sidelines of the trailer launch event of ‘Bandon Mein Tha Dum’, ‘This series win gave a lot of confidence to all the players and people.
I am sure there were many young cricketers who watched that series which would have inspired them. That memorable Test series in Australia, which will air on the streaming service Voot Select later this month.
Work done to bring players together
He further added, ‘So yes, it inspired many young players at the same time, it has brought the country together because sometimes when you win overseas, when you come back from a tough situation, So whole country is behind you, they want Indian team to win.
So yes, it was probably one of the best Test series I have been a part of. The 2020-21 win was extra special for Pujara as it came at a time when the Indian team was not playing with its core players due to injuries and other issues.
He further said, ‘But the whole team showed a strong game. There was unity in the team, all the young players who got the chance performed well. That’s why we played as a team and I think the credit goes to the entire team and that’s why we won those Test matches.