Cheteshwar Pujara Picture Credit: Twitter
The second Test between India and England has had quite a lot happening on Day 1 at Lord's. While Rohit Sharma played a brilliant knock with the bat, James Anderson once again starred with the ball. While KL Rahul continued his impressive run of form in the United Kingdom, Virat Kohli also looked in good rhythm after getting dismissed on golden duck in the previous Test. With everyone getting back in form, there was still one major concern for Team India.
India's No. 3 - Cheteshwar Pujara - continued to struggle as he got out without reaching the double figure mark. One of India's most solid batsmen over the last few years has looked a shadow of himself in last few outings. Pujara's scores in last 10 innings are: 9, 12*, 4, 15, 8, 17, 0, 7, 21, 15. The 33-year-old came into the series with a lot of pressure behind his back and he has not been able to justify the trust that the management has shown on him so far.
Pujara's bad run in Tests continues
After negating the first few balls on Thursday, the fans started to believe that it could be the day when Cheteshwar Pujara will return to form. Having struggled against the incoming deliveries in recent times, India's No. 3 looked very cautious with his defense in second Test.
Unfortunately, this time he chased an out-swinging delivery and edged the ball which went straight into the hands of Jonny Bairstow standing at third slip. He had to make a long way back to the pavilion with disappointment visible on his face.
Fans want India to drop Pujara
As soon as Pujara got dismissed on Thursday, Twitter was flooded with posts demanding the team management to drop the batsman from next game. Some users went on to claim that Pujara should be happy that he is getting to play his last Test match at Lord's.
Although there were some fans who still wanted India to stick with the 33-year-old considering what he has done for the side in past, others wanted Virat Kohli's side to move on and look for replacements with players like Mayank Agarwal, Prithvi Shaw and Suryakumar Yadav available for next match.