Raina or Pujara in the 11 for Tests vs SA

[ViruRulez]

I was thinking of the same question coincidentally today afternoon while watching the match though I did not visit ICF for the last few days. I would go for Pujara in the 11 instead of Raina though I would also give chance once in a while to Raina too in tests as he cannot be completely neglected. But after his first one or two innings he has lost his test temperament and is playing in ODI mode. Pujara always has test temperament like Dravid, Laxman etc. and so would not be a problem.

[IKnowU]

I was thinking of the same question coincidentally today afternoon while watching the match though I did not visit ICF for the last few days. I would go for Pujara in the 11 instead of Raina though I would also give chance once in a while to Raina too in tests as he cannot be completely neglected. But after his first one or two innings he has lost his test temperament and is playing in ODI mode. Pujara always has test temperament like Dravid' date=' Laxman etc. and so would not be a problem.[/quote'] We all know what Pujara brings to the table. But we treating Raina like a disposable waste after he earned his spot through sheer hard work in ODI's, t20/20 etc. He deserves ever chance he can get to be in the team regardless of the performances. Was Raina all guns blazing when he first started playing odi and tontee tontee cricket?? Pujara can wait it out until one of the bigs retire or get injured until a spot opens up. Raina had to wait until Yuvraj got kicked off and ended up making most of the opportunity.

[fineleg]

This is the last time legends are touring SA together, and we need all the 11 to be the best possible for the conditions, pitches and ability to face chin-music - so we can push SA the best we can. Raina can even get chances after SA tour - whoever is better between Raina and Pujara must be in the 11

[Clarke]

an all rounder would be the right choice, a genuine one .. someone who's a solid batsman and a great left arm spinner to compliment bhajji.

[fineleg]

an all rounder would be the right choice' date=' a genuine one .. [b']someone who's a solid batsman and a great left arm spinner to compliment bhajji.

Ravindra Jadeja :((:((:((

[bunny]

Murali Vijay easily above the other two. In fact, I'd open with Vijay and Gambhir. Sehwag as 3-down.

[achilles]

Murali Vijay easily above the other two. In fact' date=' I'd open with Vijay and Gambhir. Sehwag as 3-down.[/quote'] I doubt thats a good strategy, mate. It will put undue pressure on Murali and will harm him in the long run as a few failures and its gonna be bye-bye for quite-a-while. Instead, we can go for a genuine Middle-order batsman with a solid technique or we can go for the consistent Raina.

[fineleg]

Murali Vijay easily above the other two. In fact' date=' I'd open with Vijay and Gambhir. Sehwag as 3-down.[/quote'] If its not raina, it will be Pujara for the middle order

[Sir john]

vijay

[urbestfriend]

Shocking to see Pujara has mesmerized so many with his one innings :dontknow: In SA where we play 3 seamers and Bhajji, it is crucial to have another spinning option, so Raina is better than Pujara. SK Raina 2 1 1 2 0.50 Two important wickets :woot: Whadaplayaa

[fineleg]

^ The votes are 34-7 and I think they are more to do with Raina struggling against pace on a lively wicket.

[ZodiaC]

Shocking to see Pujara has mesmerized so many with his one innings :dontknow: In SA where we play 3 seamers and Bhajji' date=' it is crucial to have another spinning option, so Raina is better than Pujara.[/quote'] In that case Joginder Sharma might be a better option :cantstop: Being a better part timer doesn't matter much, it's the batting that matters. Pujara has been our best performer in domestics, A tours etc. and of course the way he played tha innings too. Raina probably should be given a go in the first test and if he does well, he can be persisted with.

[Silva]

Or course Raina. Selecting test players purely based on ODIs and T20s has never let us down. :headshake: Raina averages 42 or something in domestic first class cricket, if he can't dominate Indian bowlers in Indian pitches whats he going to do against steyn and co In south africa? But I do like his attidue and his bowling would be useful and he might carve out a good test career unlike yuvi so im not tottaly upset. But I would be much happier with Pujara in at number 6.

[Lord]

tough one.Raina has enough chances n hasnt convinced fully,Pujara only got 2 n did well in one,smart thing would've been to give Pujara more chances to assess,maybe in ODIs.overall Pujara has much better FC record has been doing well on A tours,Raina has obviously been great in LOIs but that shouldnt be the case for test selection,we already learnt that with Yuvi

[urbestfriend]

In that case Joginder Sharma might be a better option :cantstop: Being a better part timer doesn't matter much, it's the batting that matters. Pujara has been our best performer in domestics, A tours etc. and of course the way he played tha innings too. Raina probably should be given a go in the first test and if he does well, he can be persisted with.

Are you out of your mind to compare Jogi with Raina?:ohmy: Raina is a complete player. He is a good aggressive bat, he can bowl part time and he is a good fielder. A perfect recipe for any team to have. Agreed that he hasn't cemented his place in the test team, but remember it is just one series failure for him. As far as his struggling against pace, it is a myth. He has been rarely struggled against pace these days, he is a much better player against short balls. Of course his lack of temparment to play a long innings is a cause for concern, but he'd learn these skills with the senior team rather than outside of it. Lets not dump a talent like Raina for one series failure. I'd say give him at least 20 test matches before we dump him forever.

[Sir john]

i think raina have full support of MSD as compare to pujara. its not a wise move to expose pujara against morkel and steyn raina have experience of playing in afirca also.

[bihutoli]

Raina is a definite long term potential. But Pujara is better imo. It may be too small a sample but that innings against Australia convinced me. He shot selection, confidence and approach were superb. Raina has also played good innings in tests but there are quite a few so so moments in most of his innings (when you wince at his shot selection mostly, and his inability to let those bouncers just go). Pujara's was flawless. And his stands out in comparison to his peers in domestics as well as his India A tours. This SA tour is probably the most important tour we've had or are going to have in a long time, and I'd be more confident having Pujara in our middle order rather than Raina. If Raina kept wickets I would have replaced Dhoni with him.

[urbestfriend]

Moreover one reason we have come good is sense of security among our players. We've seen Viru's performace improved drastically after his place in the team is secure. Same with Gauti. Chop and Change strategy never worked for India. Raina boy has just played 7 matches , 10 innings and has a good average of 45, already people are talking of changing him :dontknow:

[The Dark Horse]

Pujara for me, but it wont happen.

[Lord]

Moreover one reason we have come good is sense of security among our players. We've seen Viru's performace improved drastically after his place in the team is secure. Same with Gauti. Chop and Change strategy never worked for India. Raina boy has just played 7 matches ' date=' 10 innings and[b'] has a good average of 45, already people are talking of changing him :dontknow:

40 after this match,its come down from 111 to 40 in just 5 matches about sense f security,why not give that to Pujara,why was he dropped after one game?