In grand Oval Test audition, Jadeja fails to nail down the role

Ravindra Jadeja entered the series against England with some assurance about his place in the Indian Test team. The brief at the start of the series was that in conditions where only one spinner can be selected, Jadeja's all-round credentials would provide the team batting cover and the occasional breakthrough with the ball. With India somewhat spooked by some poor recent batting performances overseas - most recently, the World Test Championship Final - the rationale made sense at the time.

However, the move to consistently keep Ravichandran Ashwin out of the XI has been questioned by pundits and fans alike, given the status of the off-spinner among India's top five wicket-takers in Test history. The all-rounder explanation too has its doubters, with Ashwin having five Test centuries to his name over the course of his career. Inadvertently, the noise around Ashwin's selection heaped pressure onto Jadeja, particularly as he struggled for runs and wickets in the first three Test matches.

The Oval Test was therefore a huge opportunity for Jadeja to shut out the noise. Picked yet again as the only spinner on the track with the most even historical balance between seam and spin in England, the Saurashtra all-rounder was also promoted twice to number five, probably in an attempt to squeeze more batting out of him. With the series also poised at 1-1, it was a massive show of faith.

---

Jadeja, the batter, flatters to deceive

Jadeja's batting returns have nosedived after a good start this series.

Although this has been a poor batting series for India, with only their top four batters averaging north of 30, there are elements of Jadeja's batting approach and technique which indicate a degree of uncertainty about his game. Notably, unlike Virat Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara and Rishabh Pant, his form has waned over the four games - 96 of his 160 runs this series came from his first two innings with the bat.

Largely in this series, Jadeja has tried controlling his aggressive instincts and leaving a large number of deliveries. While that has often meant he survives the initial burst of quick bowling, he has not been able to turn that into a significant contribution. Although India struggled in the first innings at the Oval, Jadeja managed just 17 runs on a flat pitch where almost all other Indian batters made merry in the second innings.

It asks the question - do India need Jadeja's services in particular, or can others fill this gap? Shardul Thakur's lion-hearted performance in this game stood him in sharp contrast to Jadeja, and one can imagine that Ashwin would muster at least a similar tally with willow in hand. The southpaw was unable to let his bat do the talking when given a massive opportunity to do so.

---

Jadeja, the bowler, lacks the cutting edge

Jadeja has struggled for bowling impact for a large part of the ongoing series.

To Jadeja's credit, he was able to put forth his best performance of the series with the ball at the Oval. Not only was he economical, he also picked up four wickets across the two English innings, including the opposition's No. 7 Moeen Ali twice. On paper, these are fine returns, particularly illuminated by Moeen struggling for control on the same pitch once it flattened out.

However, as has been the pattern throughout the series, Jadeja struggled to produce false shots and defeat the batsmen in defence. He needed the help of two wild slogs to bag his two wickets in the first innings. In the second innings, despite a massive, threatening rough outside the left-hander's off-stump, the left-arm spinner was not accurate enough to exploit it consistently, often bowling full tosses or outside the rough areas.

Dismissing Haseeb Hameed and Moeen Ali surely helped India wrap up a famous Test win. However, six wickets across four Test matches is a paltry return for any bowler. India have Axar Patel, who strung up England in the home series, warming the bench apart from Ashwin - both bowlers would have fancied a shot at a fifer with the sort of rough available in the second innings at the Oval.

---

There is barely any question that Ravindra Jadeja is a world-class all-rounder, in all forms of the game, and one series or two will not put a significant dent on his reputation. However, given the historic opportunity to win a Test series at England, and the all-rounder's showing through the series, India might want to think a little more before pencilling his name down in the Manchester Test playing eleven.