MS Dhoni indicates at giving Ravindra Jadeja more opportunities to come good

Ravindra Jadeja

Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni hinted at giving an ‘extended’ long rope to Ravindra Jadeja to make him come good. The left-handed cricketer averages 22.12 with the bat and 46.66 with the ball in 8 innings in the series against England so far, but the captain is worried of losing out on a fifth bowling option for the next Test against England at The Oval.

“The problem is whom do you replace him with. If we drop him, we will again go in with an extra batsman and miss a fifth bowler. I think the more he plays, the better he will get. He will have to back himself to play with confidence,” Dhoni was quoted as saying when asked about his all-rounder’s performances.

The Saurashtra-lad made 0 and 4 in the two innings at Old Trafford where the entire team struggled for runs against England bowlers. His left-arm spin fetched him only the wicket of James Anderson.

Ravichandran Ashwin, playing in his first Test match since 2013 at Johannesburg, made two 40+ scores that gave some indications that India might finally drop the 25-year-old for The Oval Test.

On Moeen Ali

Speaking on Moeen Ali, the English spinner who is now the second highest wicket taker of the series with the best average among all bowlers, Dhoni insisted the need to be positive against the offie.

“It is important to remain positive even if we lose a few wickets because it pushes the opposition into using their pacers. He consistently pitches it in the same area and makes good use of the drift,” he said.

The 27-year-old Ali with 19 wickets under his belt in the series at a strike rate of 38.7, is improving heaps and bounds and England are now considering him as a specialist spinner.

Fletcher will help Kohli perform

The 33-year-old also backed the underperforming Virat Kohli to come good with the support of coach Duncan Fletcher.

“When it comes to technical knowledge, I think Duncan has the most experience. He has been helping Virat as well as other batsmen,” he said.

Pointing to the mode of dismissal, the skipper felt that more patience should be shown towards his premier batsman.

“Virat may be 23-24, but he has been playing cricket for 14 years. So he has developed a strong set of basics of his own and it is tough to alter it in a few weeks or days. You may feel comfortable doing in the nets. But once pressure mounts in the middle, the first thing you do is to go back to your basics. That's your instinct. It will take a bit of time,” he concluded.