New Delhi: With the fourth and final Test match of the Border-Gavaskar series concluding in a drab draw in Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium Monday, Indian off spinner R Ashwin and top-order batsman Cheteshwar Pujara took to Twitter to make light of the end of the fifth day’s play.
Sharing an image of Pujara warming up to bowl leg breaks, Ashwin asked, “Main kya karu? Job chod du?” (What should I do? Quit my job), referencing a line from a 2019 standup comedy routine by Abhishek Upmanyu that had gone viral.
Main kya karu? Job chod du? 😂 pic.twitter.com/R0mJqnALJ6
— Ashwin 🇮🇳 (@ashwinravi99) March 13, 2023
Pujara responded an hour later, joking that he only came on to bowl in the final over of the series as a way to “thank” Ashwin for coming out to bat at No. 3 as the night watchman in the series’ opening Test. Ashwin had contributed 23 runs to Indian team’s total of 400 and took 8 wickets as the host defeated Australia by an innings and 132 runs in Nagpur.
Nahi. This was just to say thank you for going 1 down in Nagpur 😂 https://t.co/VbE92u6SXz
— Cheteshwar Pujara (@cheteshwar1) March 13, 2023
The banter continued with the bowler sarcastically appreciating Pujara’s “gesture” but questioned how it qualified as a “payback”, to which the batsman quipped that Ashwin now had enough “rest” to bat again as the nighwatchman in future Test matches.
Giving you enough rest so that you can go 1 down again if needed in the future 😂 https://t.co/E8lt2GOAxJ
— Cheteshwar Pujara (@cheteshwar1) March 13, 2023
On an Ahmedabad pitch that lacked the prodigious turn and variable bounce that characterised the previous three Test matches of the series, taking wickets was a challenge for both the touring side Australia and host India.
As a result, the final two overs of the game saw India engage in “declaration bowling” by having part-timers Cheteshwar Pujara and Shubman Gill bowl to Australian batsmen Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne in one final attempt to move the game along.
However, after Australia declared with a lead of 84 runs in the final session of the fifth day, the two captains Smith and Rohit Sharma decided to shake hands and call it a draw.
With the series ending at 2-1 in India’s favour, India retained the Border-Gavaskar trophy for the fourth time in a row and, in light of Sri Lanka’s two-wicket loss to New Zealand earlier on Monday, qualified for the World Test Championship final, slated to be played from 7 to 11 June at The Oval in London.
Meanwhile, the focus of India and Australia has now shifted to the three-match ODI series which will begin on Friday at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The matches are expected to function as crucial preparation for the ODI World Cup to take place in India later this year.