Alyssa Healy highlighted Pujara’s defensive mastery which consistently frustrated world-class bowlers in Test cricket
Pujara excelled as a rare anchor, holding innings together and allowing teammates to flourish around him
The revelation comes as Pujara announced his retirement from all forms of cricket, ending a distinguished career
Australia women’s captain Alyssa Healy has revealed how the men’s team had long plotted Cheteshwar Pujara’s dismissal, a revelation that comes as India’s Test stalwart announced his retirement from all forms of cricket.
Pujara hung up his boots on Sunday, August 25. Renowned for his rock-solid defence and relentless ability to wear down bowlers, he finished his career with 7,195 runs in 103 Tests at an average of 43.60, including 19 centuries and 35 half-centuries, making him India’s eighth-highest run-getter in Test history.
Among the many reactions to Pujara’s retirement, Australia women’s captain Alyssa Healy spoke about his career, saying, "I don’t have the mental fortitude to do that. When you put it like that, it’s wild," on the Willow Talk podcast.
She lauded Pujara’s role in India’s series victories in Australia, highlighting how his sheer resilience exhausted and frustrated the opposition bowlers.
"He just shut them out, drained them, and made them work so hard. By the end, they almost gave up trying to dismiss him and instead focused on the other end, because getting Pujara out felt impossible."
When asked if Pujara is the last of a dying breed, given the T20-focused training of young cricketers worldwide, Healy disagreed. She explained that modern batsmen are often taught to prioritize scoring, even in Tests.
"Last summer, we saw players like Nathan McSweeney and Marnus Labuschagne get stuck because they were balancing defence with aggressive scoring. The approach to Test batting has shifted in the T20 era," she said.
She added, "Whereas in the past, the conversation was, 'How do we bat for long periods?' Today, players like Joe Root and Steve Smith fill similar anchor roles, letting others flourish around them. It’s a really important role."
Pujara delivered some of his most extraordinary stonewalling performances in Australia, scoring 993 runs in 11 Tests at an average of 47.28. What made these innings even more remarkable was the sheer resilience he displayed, facing a staggering 2,657 deliveries, a strike rate of just 37.37.
His 126.5 balls per dismissal remain the best among the 66 overseas batsmen who have played at least 15 innings in Australia since 1990, nearly 15 balls clear of the next-best, Gary Kirsten.
A standout portion of that tally came during the 2018–19 series, where Pujara amassed 521 runs in just seven innings, facing an extraordinary 1,258 deliveries.
That single series not only highlighted his mental toughness and ability to wear down some of the world’s fiercest bowlers but also earned him two of his six Player-of-the-Match awards in Test cricket, underscoring why he has long been regarded as one of the most dependable anchors in the Indian batting lineup.
The crowning moment came during the historic 2018–19 tour, when India, under Virat Kohli, clinched the Border-Gavaskar Trophy on Australian soil for the first time. Pujara was the heartbeat of that triumph, scoring 521 runs at an average of 74.42, including three centuries, a fifty, and a highest score of 193.
