Former Indian top-order batter Cheteshwar Pujara has heaped praise on the Indian Test opener KL Rahul, calling him one of the best Test cricketers in the current Indian side. Notably, his comments came after Rahul scored 77 runs, getting retired hurt after suffering severe cramps in the ongoing first Test against Sri Lanka in Galle.
Speaking exclusively to Cricinfo on YouTube, Pujara has hailed Rahul for playing the longest format of the game traditionally instead of adopting an aggressive brand of cricket, highlighting his consistency in leaving good balls and capitalising on scoring off bad balls.
“He (KL Rahul) is, for me, probably one of the best Test cricketers in this Indian Test side. He is leading from the front all the time, showing some of the young players how to approach Test cricket. Methods might be different. Some players will carry on playing the aggressive way, but Rahul is showing again and again that Test cricket still can be played traditionally. So, he is sticking to his strength,” Cheteshwar Pujara told Cricinfo.
“What is impressive to see is that he is defending the ball well, he is leaving the ball well. When he gets his opportunity to score runs, he is capitalising on that. But the biggest point here is, he is showing that consistency, which was lacking maybe a couple of years back. He was getting enough opportunities, but he was missing out on those opportunities,” he added.
“Now, whenever he is crossing 30, 40 or 50, he is making it into a big one. Because of cramps, he couldn’t carry on with his innings. But he still has that opportunity to get to his 100. So, hopefully on Day 2, if he gets to bat, he will make it count,” Pujara concluded.
After opting to bat first, India went on to score 376/5 in 97 overs on Day 2. Devdutt Padikkal top-scored with 167 runs off 230 balls.
