'At what time in the night, he made this claim?': Butt tears down Hogg's suggestion of replacing Pujara with youngster
Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt did not agree with former Australia leg spinner Brad Hogg's views on having a youngster take Cheteshwar Pujara's No.3 spot in Tests for India.
The ever-green debate on India Test mainstay Cheteshwar Puraja's strike rate continues to rage on. This time, it is sparked by former Australia leg-spinner Brad Hogg, who believes that youngster Prithvi Shaw can be Pujara's replacement at the No.3 spot. While the view is yet to garner strong responses, it has already sparked one from Pakistan cricketer Salman Butt.
The former Pakistan captain disagreed with Hogg's suggestions, which stated that Shaw was more suited at No.3 than the opening slot and that he should feature in the upcoming Test series against England.
Butt reacting to Hogg's comments highlighted how the two Indian batsmen have different styles of play and hilariously trolled the former Australian spinner was making such comparisons
"At what time in the night, he (Hogg) made this claim? Cheteshwar Pujara and Prithvi Shaw have styles that are entirely opposite," Butt said on his YouTube channel
"One is an outright stroke player (Shaw) while the other is an outstanding defender, especially against the new ball (Pujara). Prithvi Shaw's technique is such that he plays his strokes rather freely and he plays all kinds of shots," he added.
Southpaw Butt further added that while Shaw might be an "outstanding talent" but India already have someone to play long innings in Tests.
"When you play too many shots too early in Test cricket, at times, you struggle. Shaw may be an outstanding talent and could come up with something spectacular to surprise everyone," said Butt. "That possibility cannot be ruled out. But, I am sure India must have better defensive players, who can play the long innings," he added.
Thirty-three-year-old Pujara has not been in great form this year, scoring just 364 runs in seven Tests. Moreover, at the recently-concluded World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand, he scores 8 and 15 in the first and second innings, respectively.
On the other hand, Shaw is currently in Sri Lanka, with the Shikhar Dhawan-led and Rahul Dravid-coached white-ball squad and will take part in the three-match ODI and T20I series.