In the league of extraordinary gentlemen

There is a tide in the affairs of men. Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune; omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.

The retirement of Dravid and Laxman has thrown the doors of International cricket open to the next generation of India’s cricketers and one of them, Cheteshwar Ashok Pujara certainly rode the tide at its fullest when he completed a century yesterday – to put in his own words – on his ‘second debut’. Two years earlier debuting against Australia at Bangalore as a replacement for the injured VVS Laxman, he had made sure that the Australians didn’t miss their nemesis much with a classy 72 in the second innings which ensured India’s victory. However, fate had other plans for him as he injured himself while playing in the IPL and remained out of action for four months. He had to prove himself once again by undergoing the grind of domestic cricket and earned his place in the team for the New Zealand series. With all the focus on him, touted as the man to replace the Dravid-sized hole in the Indian team, he didn’t let the enormity of the occasion get to him and calmly stroked his way to a well constructed ton.

Naturally, the sporting columns will be flooded with praise for his impregnable defense and the old-school way of grinding out the opposition but what was heartening to see was his temperament. Playing against New Zealand wasn’t exactly baptism by fire and the docile pitch and friendly home conditions meant that his technique wasn’t exactly tested. However, his mental fortitude to play a long innings was what stood out. While the other Indian batsmen were outdone more due to their rash shot selection than the brilliance of the bowler, Pujara held fort at one end with his chance-less innings; an attribute synonymous with the great player he replaced. In this era of flamboyance and swagger, his batting much like his unassuming nature proved that he belongs to the rare breed of cricketers who do not play for the gallery and give more significance to the cliche, ‘putting a price on ones wicket’.

Pujara is someone who has come up the hard way, scoring tons of runs in the domestic circuit for years without getting the national call, so he’ll truly cherish the Indian cap that now rests on his head. As often is the case, we attach more value to the things that are acquired through assiduous perseverance. In the few interviews that he has given, he mentioned that during the the injury induced hiatus, he remained positive and his faith in his abilities combined with a burning desire to do well for his country, helped him pull through the difficult time. This is attitude. Talent can only get you to a certain point, attitude will see you through to the top.

The innings he played may not highlight the technical prowess he possesses nor does it reveal whether he is the answer to Dravid’s replacement, at least until he exhibits consistency and comes up trumps in the trying situations that he will encounter in the future. However, for now one can safely say that he exhibits all the other qualities, often slighted in modern day cricket but ironically more imperative in present times to deal with the instantaneous stardom and scathing criticism with equanimity, indicating that he is not someone who follows the bandwagon.