What’s the story?
Former national selector Surendra Bhave has revealed how he turned Kedar Jadhav, a hard-core vegetarian into having chicken so that it would add power to his small frame.
You can surely give this credit to me. It was me who made him eat chicken," laughed Bhave as he spoke to PTI about Indian cricket’s latest sensation.
"I don't want to take credit for his stardom. I am like his coach, elder brother, mentor and guide, who meet on an off or exchange a few texts. The last time (in 2010-11) I told him that his backlift looked astray and he immediately corrected it resulting in an amazing transformation.”
In case you did not know...
It is not often that in a run-chase you hog the limelight from the talismanic Virat Kohli, but Jadhav successfully did that in the first One-Day International in Pune against England with a 65-ball 100. He ended up with 120, an innings which coupled with Kohli’s sensational 122 helped India overhaul England’s score of 350.
Jadhav has been the talk of the town since then. The way he smashed the rival bowlers out of the park was something very special and can only come from a classy player.
The heart of the matter
Son of former Maharashtra State Electricity Board employee Mahadev Jadhav, Kedar hails from a vegetarian family. But former national selector and Jadhav’s mentor Surendra Bhave believed unless the cricketer had meat, he would not have the required power for the rigours of cricket.
Bhave then took Jadhav along to have chicken. The new diet helped him bulk up and increase his power. As a result one could see those towering sixes in the ODI in Pune.
What next?
We will have to wait and see if Jadhav can continue the rich vein of form that he has recently found. What is brilliant to see is the man’s hunger to score runs even when the going gets tough. Jadhav is just the kind of player the Indian middle order needed to anchor the innings and belt a few big ones when needed.
He is also a very calm and collected person, and sticks by the decisions he believes are right. He had the courage to send Kohli back thrice while running in the first game. And that courage plus his calmness makes for a deadly combo.
Sportskeeda’s take
It is great to see, that a veteran of the Ranji Trophies now making a name for himself at the international circuit. If the desire is there and the form doesn’t elude him, he can be the answer to India’s middle over batting woes for the next four to five years.
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