Chennai was kind to Ravindra Jadeja.
Most recently, the all-rounder star was at his M.A. His stadium in Chidambaram during India v England first class match in December 2016. Jadeja selected a seven-wicket draw in the second innings en route to a career-best Test number of 10/154 in that game. His first and only other appearance in Chepauk was at the age of 25 during his debut series in India. Playing the second Test match, Jadeja took 5 wickets and India defeated Australia by 8 wickets. He then went on to win four Indian Premier League titles with the Chennai Super Kings.
When Jadeja showed up this week, he was accompanied by a coach from the National Cricket Academy. Jadeja has come back five months from a knee injury and will have to prove his fitness ahead of his next Border-Gavaskar Trophy with Australia.
After 3 games, we can say that he passed the test.
It was revealed that Tamil Nadu and Saurashtra will face off in Ranji his trophy match in the 7th round on Chennai’s classic pitch. Tamil Nadu secured a total of more than 300 in the first innings and held Saurashtra in 60 overs to give them a huge lead of 132 runs.
In Jaydev Unadkat’s absence Jadeja, who is also Saurashtra’s captain, wasted no time as he picked up a new ball and hit it in the first over. Jadeja pulled Shahrukh Khan to his front foot with a throw from long enough to hit the outside edge and hit the stumps – the only highlight he provided in his first five-over spell.
Dharmendrasinh Jadeja deftly backed him up from the other side and removed his two batters within his five overs in the first. Off-spinner Yuvraj Singh Dodiya then replaced Jadeja. However, breaking the spell only changes the ending. Jadeja didn’t want to quit. He played 12 consecutive overs. The Jadeja we’ve known for years is back – digging into deliveries, sticking to stump-to-stump lines, offering no flight, no space, and finishing on the spot.
“I’ve been bowling for a long time, so nothing new. was fun. Pitch helped me. A strange ball spins and stays low when hit. That’s why I always wanted to bowl,” Jadeja said after the game.
After resistance from the Tamil Nadu duo of Baba Indrajit and Sai Sudarshan, Jadeja stepped forward. Indrajit went first. In a field where the ball stayed low, the batter made the mistake of holding back. The ball slipped under his racket and Indrajit was castled.Tamil Nadu captain Pradsh Ranjan Paul has learned nothing from his predecessor. He also accidentally stayed behind his crease and was previously trapped in his leg. Vijay Shankar held off the decline with an aggressive shot. He lofted his over mid-on from Jadeja on his 4th run. At Jadeja’s Next Over, Shankar attempted a sweep, misread the line, and was ruled before his leg. A third referee’s check revealed that Jadeja had gone too far and Shankar was granted a pardon.
Riding the confidence of the purple patch, Shankar tried to fend off the next shipment, but he met the same fate. This time, Jadeja’s landing foot was behind the crease and Saurashtra took the seventh wicket.
When he reeled in Tails in the next three overs, Jadeja showed that returning to the crease was not the way to fight back. Stepping out and playing with your front foot doesn’t help either.
Ajith Ram and M. Siddharth tried to defend the front foot and were attacked, but Sandeep Warrior holed up the center and freed his foot to try to play across the line.
With 23 overs, Tamil Nadu were hoping to bounce back by just three wickets. On the 37th, we folded as Jadeja finished with numbers 17, 1-3, 53-7.
“It’s been a long time since I played a match and it feels really good. Hopefully I’m ready to go now. The first day was tough, but as the match progressed I felt better.”
Earlier in the day, Jadeja also seemed proficient with the bat. His stay was just 23 balls, but Jadeja hit three boundaries. Through the middle of the wicket he pulls two of his shots and a sweep through the square leg.
Jadeja claimed to be ready for the big challenge in Australia. For most of this game, he’s shown it with the ball. However, the Indian Test he used the racquet a little longer as one of his options for the series’ limited left-handed shot adds weight to his claim. With Saurashtra completing 262 runs in difficult conditions on the final day, Jadeja will have a great opportunity to test his skills.