Cheteshwar Pujara - What the numbers say

#4 Occupying the crease

Pujara has the ability to spend long hours at the crease

A lot of people discredit Pujara for his slow strike rate, however, not enough credit goes to him for his sheer grit and the amount of time he spends in the middle. Pujara’s average number of deliveries faced per inning are nearly 93; 2 overs more or more than that of Gambhir’s, Kohli’s or Rahane’s.

A typical Number 3 batsman needs to spend a lot of time in the middle, soaking pressure from the bowlers, thereby giving his team and teammates the ability and luxury to try and score freely at the other end, as one end is securely anchored. Rahul Dravid was the master of this trait, and averaged nearly 109 deliveries per innings, giving enough time and opportunity to his partners to flourish.

It’s no strange co-incidence that Dravid has featured in some of the most memorable partnerships of Indian test cricket. Pujara, like his idol Dravid, has modelled his game to play a lot of deliveries and give his partners more freedom to attack.

At his position, not only does it see off the lingering threat of the new ball, it also helps tire bowlers out, and gives enough time to the batsman at the other end to acclimatise and settle in. He may not be close to Dravid’s caliber yet, but he surely is modeling this part of his game in a Dravid-esque manner.