The World Cup-winning player Mohinder Amarnath believes that too much blocking is not helping Cheteshwar Pujara. It is generally noted that Pujara goes into a shell and doesn’t look to rotate the strike.
In fact, Pujara has a strong technique, however, if he doesn’t get on with the game, the scoreboard remains constant. Thus, as the game is about the runs, Pujara must also find ways to keep the scoreboard moving. Therefore, of Pujara fails to keep scoring runs it will lead to more pressure on himself and his partner at the other end.
Cheteshwar Pujara hasn’t kept the scoreboard moving.
Yes, the initial phase of an inning is a different story. At that time, every batsman needs some time at the crease before he can hit the ground running.
“The pre-determined movement to the front foot and the inability to play with soft hands are conspiring to create a situation where the batsmen are prodding at the ball. The other problem is excessive defence,” Amarnath wrote in his column for the Times of India.
Therefore, Amarnath believes that Pujara can put the pressure on the other batsmen if he doesn’t score runs.
“Cheteshwar Pujara, for instance, has a sound technique which helps him occupy the crease for long. However, he tends to stop scoring and if a wicket falls at the other end, the scoreboard looks dismal, putting further pressure on the incoming batsman. A reluctance to rotate strike among the batsmen yields advantage to the bowlers.”
Meanwhile, the World Cup winning hero Mohinder Amarnath had scalped three wickets and scored 26 runs in the final of 1983 World Cup final. In fact, Amarnath believes that other Indian batsmen who have failed to get going on the foreign tour can take a leaf out of Virat Kohli’s book.
“Our batsmen would do well to study how Virat Kohli is playing, with shots off the backfoot. He has tweaked his game so that he can deal with the moving ball,” Amarnath said.
“The rest, too, do not have to curb their style – they simply need to make adjustments in their footwork to ensure they are compact at the crease. They also need to realise that they need to keep the scoreboard moving since runs are critical even in such conditions.”