Cheteshwar Pujara will have to play a key role, if India are to beat Australia, in the Test series starting December 4 in Brisbane. His performance in the England tour, however, was far from impressive but the Saurashtra batsman is aiming to fulfil his potential in the tour Down Under.
Pujara has turned to Rahul Dravid to improve his batting prowess to cope Australia’s pace attack. The fast and bouncy Australian pitches will certainly test Indian batsmen, who looked vulnerable in front of James Anderson and company in England.
“I have spoken to Rahul Dravid about the conditions in Australia,” Pujara said. “Someone of his calibre and experience will always point out those minor issues, which otherwise may get missed. His approach towards the game is exemplary.”
Pujara only managed to score 222 runs in five Tests against England, featuring one fifty, at an average of 22.20. Australia’s pace attack, led by speedster Mitchell Johnson, will test Pujara and company when Team India will take field in the first Test.
The Rajkot-born, meanwhile, insisted that he is concentrating on “keeping things simple” in the series, rather than focusing on Aussie bowlers.
“I want to keep things simple and concentrate on what I need to do to score runs rather than think about the opposition’s bowlers,” Pujara insisted.
“Overall as a batsman, I need to be sure of which areas I can score runs and which deliveries I need to leave alone,” he added. “That is going to be my focus instead of the bowler I am facing.”
