Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) icon AB de Villiers reflected on his time playing alongside Indian batter Cheteshwar Pujara in the IPL. Pujara, who represented the franchise between 2011 and 2013, rarely found a place in the playing XI during that period.
De Villiers pointed out that despite limited opportunities, the Saurashtra cricketer consistently maintained a positive attitude and carried a smile on his face. Sharing his thoughts in his latest YouTube video (at 0:47), the former South African captain recalled those moments.
“What a fantastic player! I played with him at RCB for a brief while. I think it was one season, maybe two. He didn’t play a lot of games, so he won’t have fond memories of it, but I do, as I’ve always enjoyed his presence. Very quiet, calm, collected kind of character. Just a nice guy, genuinely. Had a nice smile on his face more often than not, and that’s what I’ll remember about him at RCB.”
“I Had Great Respect For Him”- AB de Villiers On Pujara
Cheteshwar Pujara emerged as a key pillar in India’s Test batting order at the height of his career. Renowned for his perseverance, he delivered many hard-fought performances and retired with 19 centuries and 35 fifties to his name. AB de Villiers spoke highly of Pujara, likening him to Indian batting legend Rahul Dravid. In the same video (at 1:12), he stated:
“His Test career is what we’ll remember about him when it comes to cricket. Just a guy with a lot of grit. fighting spirit, never say die kind of attitude. Us South Africans always look at the way we play, and we are proud of the way that we never say die, and we have that kind of fighting spirit.”
“But Pujara was one of those guys that I look at and I had so much respect for him, the way he played Test cricket. Always the rock in the team, almost similar in a way to Rahul Dravid back in the day, who was a very, very tough campaigner to get rid of.”
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