Recently retired Rahul Dravid was nicknamed ‘The Wall’ because of his elegant stroke play and his ability to rise up to the team’s cause in high pressure situations. He played like a wall against the bowlers in home and away conditions.
When Rahul Dravid retired, he left behind a legacy. The selectors were in a real fix to find a replacement for him. Rahul Dravid played at No. 3. In ODIs, there was Virat Kohli, another talented batsman, who held the fort for the No. 3 slot. However, Indian Test cricket was a tough problem. Mr. Dependable - V.V.S Laxman – announced his retirement even before selectors could recover from the shock of Dravid’s retirement. It was a grave problem as there was this India- New Zealand series coming up in two months’ time, and something had to be done fast. Then the selectors’ committee, headed by Krishnamachari Srikkanth, introduced somebody known in domestic cricket but not even heard of in international cricket. His name was Chateshwar Pujara.
The expectations from Pujara were tall and it appears that he has surpassed those expectations quite well. He debuted in the India- New Zealand series and made a score of 161 in the first innings itself. In the recently concluded first Test match against England, which India won by 9 wickets, Pujara made 206* in the first and 41* in the second innings.
Pujara is indeed a very talented batsman. But it may be too early to judge him as the next ‘Wall’. Even the original Wall had to perform consistently for 50 matches to be called by that name.
Nobody knows who will be the next Wall and will there be another Wall at all. But, as of now, Chateshwar Pujara stands a good chance of becoming the next Wall of Indian Cricket.
When Rahul Dravid retired, he left behind a legacy. The selectors were in a real fix to find a replacement for him. Rahul Dravid played at No. 3. In ODIs, there was Virat Kohli, another talented batsman, who held the fort for the No. 3 slot. However, Indian Test cricket was a tough problem. Mr. Dependable - V.V.S Laxman – announced his retirement even before selectors could recover from the shock of Dravid’s retirement. It was a grave problem as there was this India- New Zealand series coming up in two months’ time, and something had to be done fast. Then the selectors’ committee, headed by Krishnamachari Srikkanth, introduced somebody known in domestic cricket but not even heard of in international cricket. His name was Chateshwar Pujara.
The expectations from Pujara were tall and it appears that he has surpassed those expectations quite well. He debuted in the India- New Zealand series and made a score of 161 in the first innings itself. In the recently concluded first Test match against England, which India won by 9 wickets, Pujara made 206* in the first and 41* in the second innings.
Pujara is indeed a very talented batsman. But it may be too early to judge him as the next ‘Wall’. Even the original Wall had to perform consistently for 50 matches to be called by that name.
Nobody knows who will be the next Wall and will there be another Wall at all. But, as of now, Chateshwar Pujara stands a good chance of becoming the next Wall of Indian Cricket.
