http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Ramiz-Hasan-Raja-c83872 lauds double centurion Pujara – Cricket News Update
Former http://www.senore.com/Cricket/England-c56013, in the first Test at Motera, Ahmedabad.
Pujara, 24, played a dazzling unbeaten knock of 206 runs in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750’s declared first innings to help his side post a mammoth 521-run total on the board, and put the hosts in a commanding position from the word go.
This was Pujara’s ninth 150-plus score in the last ten centuries scored in Test and first class cricket. He earlier missed out a double ton against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Mumbai-c820.
However, after scoring the double ton last week, Pujara said that the missed opportunities in the past kept him motivated to score a century against England at the highest level and then convert it into a double ton.
The emerging Gujarat star was sent to open the second innings for India, in the absence of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Delhi-c780 due to his grandmother’s demise. He scored 41 not out in the second innings to steer the hosts to a nine-wicket win over the Poms, and was duly adjudged as the Man of the Match.
"Pujara played a fine innings. England may be technically weaker but are a mentally strong unit. I feel to score over 200 against a team like that is the hallmark of a confident batsman," Ramiz Raja said while speaking to PTI-Bhasha.
However, the former Pakistan batsman felt that the rookie No. 3 batsman should not be compared to veteran http://www.senore.com/Cricket/R-Dravid-c2229, who retired from Test cricket in March this year.
"To compare him to Dravid is going a bit too far. Dravid has himself told me that he was not as confident when he was Pujara's age," he added further.
The 50-year-old cricketer turned commentator, who played 57 Tests and 198 One Day Internationals for Pakistan, also tipped a 4-0 whitewash for http://www.senore.com/Cricket/MS-Dhoni-c2028 and men in the ongoing four-Test series.
India currently lead the series 1-0. The second Test of the series gets underway in Mumbai on Friday.
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