Pujara poised for his great leap forward

The last year was one Cheteshwar Pujara wouldn8217;t want to remember. It began with him missing out, thanks to an official slip-up, on a s...

The last year was one Cheteshwar Pujara wouldn8217;t want to remember. It began with him missing out, thanks to an official slip-up, on a stint at the Australian Cricket Academy after winning the Border-Gavaskar scholarship. A few months later, he lost his mother to cancer.

Pujara was on the field just days after the tragedy representing Saurashtra in an under-19 game. He played that match through a mist of tears and that mist returned today when he returned to the pavilion. He8217;d just hit a six off the last ball to finish at 122 not out in the semi-final against England.

8216;8216;Yes on such occasions, I miss my mother a lot.8217;8217;

As happened throughout the tournament, Pujara gave India a start and they didn8217;t look back. With scores of 66 no, 47 no, 10, 97 and 122 no and an average of 170, the 17-year-old from Rajkot has taken Colombo by storm.

The only two opening century stands in this World Cup have come from the Pujara-Gaurav Dhiman combination. Many see the Indian openers as the hare-tortoise combination with Dhiman taking the aerial route while Pujara plays his shots along the ground. And, adding to the odd-couple theory, those in the dressing room say Pujara is the silent one, Dhiman the 8216;kalakar8217;.

Pujara, who is the third generation in his family to play Ranji cricket, is in the 1980s mould of Indian batsmen. Not too keen on running between the wickets and an average fielder but flawless when it comes to strokemaking. Namibian coach Andy Waller has called him 8216;8216;Test material8217;8217; but the tag has proved a big hurdle for the youngster in the past.

The decision makers did say that he was technically perfect but always added one rider: His scoring was too slow. That opinion should change after his 122 off 147 balls, with 12 fours and a six. Or the 21 runs he scored in the 50th over.

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Actually, the last-over slog won8217;t go down very well with his father Arvind, who has always insisted on correct technique. For the past decade or so those living in the vicinity of the Railways cricket ground in Rajkot would have regularly noticed father and son diligently practicing at nets. The joke around the ground was the pavilion might shift somewhere but not these guys.8217;8217;

8216;8216;My father had a very simple coaching style8217;8217;, Cheteshwar says about those days. 8216;8216;I started playing serious cricket when I was eight. For the first two years he would just roll the ball underarm to me and I was supposed to keep it on the ground.8217;8217; It8217;s a lesson he still follows diligently.

Father Arvind from Rajkot too wants a say on his son8217;s big day. 8216;8216;It has been a journey of sacrifices. We have gone through a lot. Expensive medical treatment for my wife and raising a young cricketer isn8217;t easy. Plus the lack of infrastructure in a small place like Rajkot. He still trains on a cement pitch with matting on top of it,8217;8217; he says.

The pavilion may not have shifted but Cheteshwar Pujara is ready for the great leap forward.