Playing 100 Test matches is a reflection of Pujara’s longevity: Rahul Dravid

India veteran batter Cheteshwar Pujara is all set to play his 100th Test match in the second Test of the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy between India and Australia at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi, starting from Friday.

35-year-old Pujara will become the 13th Indian cricketer to complete a century of matches in the purest form of the game.

Ahead of this landmark for Pujara, India head coach Rahul Dravid praised the right-handed batter, saying the achievement of playing 100 Tests is a reflection of Pujara’s longevity, resilience, fitness and ability.

“It is a very huge achievement for a cricketer as when you reach a milestone like this one, you do need the talent to reach to this level and play this much of cricket. Talent is definitely needed, but apart from that, there are a lot of things as playing 100 Test matches is a reflection of your longevity. It involves a lot of things like fitness, resilience, ability to handle success, as in this journey of playing a hundred Test matches, it cannot be like you have not seen ups and downs,” Dravid said in the press conference on Wednesday.

Pujara, who has always been a Test match specialist for India, made his Test debut in October 2010 which coincidentally came in the second Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. He scored 72 off 89 balls in the second innings on his debut helping India to chase down the target with ease.

Since then, Pujara never looked back and has emerged as a regular No.3 batter for India in Test cricket. Till now, Pujara has played 99 Tests, scoring 7021 runs at an average of 44.15, with 19 centuries and 34 half-centuries.

“One has to go past the ups and downs and bear with it. One has to play bowling attacks of different kinds and various questions are asked of you, on and off the field. Playing a hundred Test matches takes a minimum of ten years, and what Pujara has done in the last 13-14 years to achieve this, it is a huge thing. It’s a tribute to his skill without any doubt, but tribute to so many things previously mentioned,” added Dravid, himself a member of the 100 Tests club from India.

Pujara is also the only Indian batter to face over 500 deliveries in a Test inning, which again came against Australia in the third Border-Gavaskar Trophy match at Ranchi in 2017, where he scored 202 off 525 balls in a marathon knock of 672 minutes. In that innings, he went past the record of Dravid, who had made 270 off a mammoth 495 balls against Pakistan at Rawalpindi in 2004.

“He’s a very popular player in the team, so there is huge happiness in the team that he’s got a chance to play a hundred Test matches. I hope that he does well, not only in this Test match, but also in future matches, just in the way he’s been doing for India. If you see the last ten years, Cheteshwar Pujara has played very critical and decisive knocks for the country which have led the side to victory in various series,” said Dravid.

“So, he’s been a very important player in the team for the last 13-14 years, and is a very popular member too. So, everyone is very happy that we are there with him to celebrate this moment,” he added.