Cheteshwar Pujara had a horrible outing against New Zealand in the first innings of the Mumbai Test. Batting at number 3, the right-hand batter was dismissed by left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel for a 5-ball duck. But in the second innings, he was promoted up the order. He came in as an opener alongside Mayank Agarwal and played with more confidence and self-belief.
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Why did Pujara opened in the 2nd innings?
Pujara was promoted as an opening batsman on Saturday after Shubman Gill didn’t take the field due to an elbow injury that he picked up while fielding in the first innings. Taking to its official Twitter handle, the BCCI informed that the youngster didn’t recover by the time the hosts decided to bat instead of enforce a follow-on.
“Shubman Gill suffered a blow to his right elbow while fielding in the first innings. He has not recovered completely and hence not taken the field as a precautionary measure,” wrote the BCCI.
New Zealand suffered a horrendous batting collapse after Ajaz Patel picked up a 10-wicket haul. In reply to India’s 325, the visitors were bundled out for 62, which is now the lowest team total in Test cricket in India.
