 "'Cheteshwar Pujara was very hardworking from the start, and the discipline paid him dividends' - Father Arvind")
synopsis
Cheteshwar Pujara has become one of India's most dependable batters, especially in Tests. Meanwhile, his father, Arvind, has opened up as to how hardworking and disciplined he was.
It was in 2006 when Cheteshwar Pujara called up his mother, Reena, after finishing a district-level game and asked her to tell his father, Arvind, to pick him up from the Rajkot bus stand. On arrival at the bus stand, he didn't see his dad but a relative who informed him about his mother's death.
Cheteshwar Pujara's pain threshold has always been relatively high. The body blows inflicted by the Australia pacers, or the tragedy of his beloved mother's untimely demise have shaken him to the core, but they haven't been able to break his resolve. As he stands on the cusp of his 100th Test, the quiet warrior of Indian cricket has done his ilk proud. He is one of the few determined introverts who win the race.
"In any sport, 100 matches is no mean feat. It would be best if you had a lot of dedication and discipline, fitness, proper diet. All these combined help in your longevity in international cricket. And, yes, a bit of luck," Arvind Pujara told PTI during an interaction from his Rajkot residence.
Being a father and his illustrious son's only coach and sounding board, Arvind bhai is undoubtedly a proud man but never expresses his happiness. Cheteshwar is 35 now. It was a 27-year journey that started when a former Saurashtra first-class cricketer Arvind saw a spark in his eight-year-old son and started coaching him.
Arvind also took his son to Mumbai and sought former India cricketer and respected coach Karsan Ghavri's opinion on whether he should devote more time to his son's development as a player. The answer was affirmative, and the bland Railway Colony ground was witness to history.
"When I started [coaching Cheteshwar], there was no target as such in mind, and also, it is not fair to assume anything. But, yes, he was very hardworking from the start, and the discipline paid him dividends," Arvind bhai, who played six first-class games in the mid and late 70s, said.
Talk about Cheteshwar, the player, and the first thing that comes to mind is his mental resolve. While working on a cricket book, which had a chapter on Cheteshwar, there was a conversation with Arvind bhai where he recollected how his teenage son had internalised his mother's demise and didn't shed a tear in private or public. He just went quiet.
"He never cried and just went quiet. He went to play an age-group game in Mumbai, and I had to tell the team coach to keep an eye on him as I was worried," Pujara senior had said back then. When Arvind bhai was asked to revisit those times, his voice had a tinge of emotion.
"It was a difficult period. You can never replace a mother, however hard you may try," Pujara senior said. However, at a young age, Cheteshwar had a spiritual streak, which probably helped him in his steely resolve. "My late wife's Guruji, Haracharan Das ji Maharaj, took great care of him. His aunt cooked food for Guruji, stayed in that ashram and cared for my son. I won't say that only I am instrumental in shaping him; his Guruji did play a massive role in his mental make-up and development," there was a lot of gratitude in his voice.
While physical pain can be endured to an extent with the available remedies, what about the silent sufferings of the heart, for which there is no panacea? "Body ka pain toh dikhta hain, lekin andruni chot, dil ka chot dikhta nahi [One can tell if somebody is in physical pain, but how does one see the emotional turmoil?]" Arvind bhai said.
But then, he revealed how his son's pain endurance increased over the years. "A doctor friend of mine, when he [Cheteshwar] was starting, had advised him, 'Don't take painkillers when you get hurt. Painkillers don't heal injuries quickly; the body takes time to heal. You saw him take those 11 blows on the ribs, knuckles and forearm during that Test in Australia," said Arvind bhai, as one could gauge his heart swelling with pride.
But how did he handle emotional pain? Arvind bhai had another beautiful childhood story of his son. "As a kid, he was hooked to video games and would always want to play. His mom would then keep a condition. 'If you pray for 10 minutes, then I will allow you to play video games', she would tell Cheteshwar."
"Now, as a father, I didn't like that method as I thought it was a sort of 'blackmailing'. I even had arguments with my wife that if you want to let him play video games, say 'yes', and if you don't, then plain and say, 'No'. In the beginning, she didn't tell me anything. But, some days later, she explained why she did that."
"I want our son to have faith in God. If he prays every day for even 10 minutes when he grows up and is in a difficult situation, the prayer will help him. Cheteshwar became spiritual. That habit helped him, and no university can teach you [that] other than a mother."
I always knew 50s, 70s won't help; you needed big scores
Cheteshwar has three double-hundreds in Test cricket and multiple triple-hundreds at the First-Class (FC) level. When he got his first lessons in cricket from his father in the late 90s, the concept of the Indian Premier League (IPL) was still alien. Hence, if you see him stepping out to Nathan Lyon and playing the on-drive on the left or right of the mid-on fielder, piercing the grass, you know it has come from hours of honing his basics in that small Rajkot ground.
"When I started teaching him the basics of cricket, there was no IPL. At 13, he scored a triple hundred in a BCCI U-14 tournament back in the day. I told him that the 50s and 60s had no value. If you want to get noticed, score hundreds and double hundreds," said Pujara senior.
So, which one of Cheteshwar's 19 Test hundreds is his favourite? "Well, each hundred had a different context and backdrop, and the team's need was different. So, it takes work to say. Did he perform the role given to him by the team? If he did, then it counts. When he opened his account after 53 dot balls in South Africa, that also had immense value, it was what the situation demanded."
On Friday, Arvind bhai, Cheteshwar's wife Puja and daughter Aditi will be at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi to savour the momentous occasion. No one is more deserving than this absolute devotee of Test cricket.
(With inputs from PTI)
subscribe to Asianet News Whatsapp channel by clicking here.
subscribe to Asianet News on YouTube by clicking here.