VISITORS NOT SHY ABOUT SLEDGING
CRICKET: Virat Kohli’s sledge protege Cheteshwar Pujara says India won’t change its aggressive mindset or panic at ongoing bowling woes punctuating 70 years without series success in Australia.
Pujara wasn’t chirpy in the field until ‘learning the tricks of sledging’ through skipper Kohli and continually baiting David Warner on Australia’s Test tour of the subcontinent last year.
India won’t go looking for onfield conflict, with Warner and Steve Smith serving ball tampering bans, but won’t shy away from it.
“When it comes to Indian cricket we will play a brand of cricket we have been playing. Sledging... when we start off playing the first Test but one thing we are assured of is playing competitive cricket,” said 30-year-old Pujara. “If it happens it happens but we are not very much focused on it, we want to win the Test and series.”
The Cricket Australia XI kept the tourists in the field for 151 overs in amassing 544 at the SCG last week.
Indian players were given the option of resting on Monday in Adelaide, but Pujara reckoned the tourists “got enough practice” in Sydney.
Spearhead Ishant Sharma averages 62 over 10 Tests in Australia and took 1/73 in Sydney. Ravi Ashwin’s Test bowling average of 54 in Australia showed no signs of abating at the SCG, leaking 2/122 from 40 overs against the CA XI.
“Conceding 500 runs doesn’t mean anything, I don’t think it was a Test or very much worried about it. The bowlers know what they have to do. Most of our bowlers played here in 2015 and are very confident,” Pujara said. “When it comes to our fast bowling attack this is one of the best we have had for many years.”