“Someone Like…”: Cheteshwar Pujara Wants This Star To Bat At No. 3 vs Aus. Not Shubman Gill

The 2024/25 Border Gavaskar Trophy will get underway on Friday, with India taking on Australia in the first Test of a five-match series in Perth. The Indian team will enter an unfamiliar territory as veteran batter Cheteshwar Pujara, who was a vital cog in the team’s last two Test series triumphs in Australia, not part of the team for the lengthy tour. Pujara, who is part of the official commentary team for the series, feels Test cricket is moving into a different direction with white-ball players provide a fresh approach to batting in the longest format of the game.

Young batter Shubman Gill, who has been batting at no. 3, a position which Pujara made his own for over a decade, is likely to miss the opening game at the Optus Stadium due to a thumb injury.

Gill will have his task cut out against Australia, but Pujara wants the youngster to back his technique and carve out his own identity.

“Shubman has already played Tests in Australia. He has experience of handling those conditions. He should back his style and play according to it. But he needs to be clear about which shots to play and which ones to avoid because you can’t play many of the shots in Australia that you play in India,” Pujara in an interaction organised by Star Sports.

Pujara also advised Gill to be a bit thoughtful with his shot selection going forward.

“He needs to assess his strengths and identify the shots he must avoid. But he is a very talented player with a wide range of shots in his repertoire. Still, in Australia, you often have to avoid many shots. He needs to identify and avoid those,” he added.

However, Pujara wants veteran batter KL Rahul to bat no. 3, highlighting the latter’s experience of batting in the middle order the key factor.

“Someone like KL Rahul would be good at No. 3 because he has the technique and temperament for it, but it seems like the management want to make him open the batting,” Pujara explained.

Meanwhile, Devdutt Padikkal, who was added to India’s squad on the eve of the 1st Test, is likely to bat at no. 3 if Gill misses out.