Former Indian cricketer Cheteshwar Pujara has heaped praise on the Sri Lankan middle-order batter Sonal Dinusha, stating that he reminded him of Sri Lankan legends like Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene.
Speaking on Cricinfo, Pujara reckoned that Dinusha has the talent to become a great batter for his country. For the unversed, Dinusha scored 420 runs at an average of 140 in four innings as he emerged as the leading run-scorer in the series with three centuries and a half-century.
“The way he has batted throughout the series has been phenomenal. He takes me into that era of batters like Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene. When I was growing up, I used to look up to those Sri Lankan players. In 5-10 years, Sonal Dinusha can be one of the greats of Sri Lankan cricket. He has shown that potential. The way he batted on the last day of the second Test match, it was a commendable effort,” Pujara said on Cricinfo.
While Dinusha scored 103 runs in the first innings of the second Test against India in Colombo, he went on to put up an exceptional 133-run unbeaten knock in the second innings to emerge as the player of the match.
On the other hand, he got impressive support from the lower-order batter Keshara Nuwantha, who scored 18 off 74 in the first innings and 46 off 150 in the second. Pujara went on to hail Nuwantha and Lahiru Kumara for supporting Dinusha from the other end.
“Credit to Keshara Nuwantha and Lahiru Kumara as well. The partnerships were very crucial. The kind of technique Nuwantha showed was surprising because his first-class record doesn’t suggest that. Especially against the spinners, he was allowing the ball to hit the bat,” Pujara added.
“The pitch was on the easier side, but the ball was turning a bit. There was a little bit of movement for the seamers with the second new ball, and there was pressure,” he concluded.
