Cheteshwar Pujara topped the trend charts hours after Josh Hazlewood announced he won’t be featuring in IPL 2021.
The Australian pacer cited bubble fatigue, admitting he wants to spend more time with family as one of the reasons for opting out of IPL 2021.
But cricket fans cheekily suggested that Josh Hazlewood had opted out of the tournament for an entirely different reason. They believed it was because the pacer was not too keen on facing Cheteshwar Pujara once again.
Josh Hazlewood versus Cheteshwar Pujara has developed into one of the most iconic rivalries in recent years.
The duo have been at each other's throats during the last two India-Australia series, with both coming out of the matchup with varying levels of success.
Cheteshwar Pujara’s trademark grit and zen-like concentration have seen him deny Josh Hazlewood for hours, while the bowler has found success against India’s Test No. 3 as well.
Many feel bowling to Pujara for long hours has frustrated Hazlewood, with Indian fielding coach R Sridhar once suggesting the same to Ravichandran Ashwin on the latter's YouTube channel.
" I received some information from the Australian dressing room when they were analysing Pujara's batting. Hazlewood apparently threw his cap down and said ' Enough of me seeing Pujara again, I have seen him enough on the field.'"
After Josh Hazlewood announced the decision, Twitter erupted with some hilarious memes and comments referring to his iconic battle with Cheteshwar Pujara.
A set of fans suggested Josh Hazlewood opted out of IPL 2021 after seeing Cheteshwar Pujara go at it in the nets.
A recent video of Cheteshwar Pujara smashing sixes in the nets went viral, and fans hilariously tweeted the same deterred Hazlewood from traveling to India.
As always, it was the countless memes that took the prize on Twitter. Fans claimed Josh Hazlewood did not want to bowl to Cheteshwar Pujara in the nets, as they posted some comical memes online.