Cheteshwar Pujara scored a gritty 123 in punishing conditions to steady the Indian innings after the visitors lost early wickets on Day 1 of their first Test match against Australia in Adelaide on Thursday.

Pujara’s 16th Test hundred and first in Australia helped India recover to 250-9 at stumps, after they had been reduced to 127-6 at one stage. He also rated his 16th Test ton as among his most memorable, hitting seven fours and two sixes in his 246-ball stay at the crease as wickets fell around him.

Pujara currently has the best average against Australia in the list of Indians with minimum 1200 runs in Tests and in the overall list, he is currently in the fourth position. It is a huge feat for him as his average in Test matches in Australia at the moment is better than legends like Sachin Tendulkar, Sunil Gavaskar and Gundappa Vishwanath.

Most balls faced by India’s #3 in an innings in Australia

446 - Dravid at Adelaide in 2003

312 - M Amarnath at Sydney in 1986

246 - C Pujara at Adelaide in 2018

244 - Dravid at Melbourne in 2003

202 - H Adhikari at Melbourne in 1948

“It was one of my top innings in Test cricket, I could say top five. I can’t rate whether it was one of the best but the teammates who were appreciating said that this is one of the best,” Pujara said.

“Myself and Ash [Ashwin] had a good partnership and then, once we lost Ash, I knew I had to accelerate. I knew what shots I could play on the wicket because I batted for two sessions.

“But it was tough, particularly with the weather. We are used to it in India but still it was hot and humid,” he added.

(With agency inputs)

First Published: Dec 06, 2018 17:53 IST