5 best moments from Ravindra Jadeja's international career

“The best way for me is to play my game”

A man of few words, Ravindra Jadeja is an uncomplicated character, a sparkly all-rounder who has thrived as an international cricketer by playing to the best of his strengths, revamping his game without shedding the essential characteristics that made Shane Warne herald the then 19-year old as a “rockstar”.

It’s hard to bracket Jadeja as a genuine Test all-rounder yet, for that designation also entails several other legends of the game who mastered both arts convincingly and accumulated mind boggling statistics over several years of play.

Jadeja has been one of the most improved international cricketers of this decade. He was raw and edgy when he first came, a fish out of water, struggling to fill in the missing pieces and unable to lift his game to the next level. A subject of various internet trolls, Jadeja’s relentless quest to improve oneself saw his transformation from a scrawny bits-and-pieces player to a muscular, hard-hitting bowling all-rounder. Others doubted him, but he never questioned his own ability. His fielding had always been impressive, and his bullet arm is still probably the best in business.

As a sample, here’s Jadeja, playing archery on the cricket field:

While his bowling as increased by leaps and bounds, his batting, forever questioned for its lack of dependency, provides spark to the lower order. Although he has three triple centuries to his credit in first-class cricket, Jadeja has managed just three fifty-plus scores in his entire 23 Test career. It isn’t the runs he scores, but the manner that makes him the team’s X-factor.

Here are five moments that stand out from Ravindra Jadeja’s seven-year career for the Indian team:

#5 vs Australia, Delhi Test (2013)

With Ravichandran Ashwin and Pragyan Ojha ruling the roost till 2013, there were question marks over Ravindra Jadeja’s place in the Test side. The Delhi Test against Australia breathed life into Jadeja’s dwindling Test career, and gave him the launchpad to become India’s premier spinner as Ashwin’s form dipped and Ojha’s career went downhill.

In the first innings, he played second fiddle to a rampant Ravi Ashwin ( 5 wickets), picking up a couple of victims. With the bat, he did what he does best, adding the extra crucial runs down the order to boost India’s total. With a slim lead in hand, India needed one of the bowlers to conjure something special. A galvanised Jadeja picked up five wickets, sending the Australian line-up in a tizzy. They huffed and puffed to 164, gifting India a small target which was usurped with six wickets to spare. A 4-0 whitewash was accomplished.

#4 vs New Zealand, Auckland ODI (2014)

Jadeja swinging his bat around during his innings against NZ in 2014

The much-vaunted Indian batting line-up collapsed in the face of a challenging target of 315 against New Zealand during an ODI at Auckland in 2014. Despite a solid start by Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan, they slid to 146-5 in the 28th over. Dhoni tried to repair the damage with Ashwin, but couldn’t carry on further than his 50.

The Indian spin duo of Ravi Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja decided to take matters into their own hands and steer the ship henceforth. Ashwin, whose strength lies in orthodox strokes, suddenly took a liking for big heaves. Jadeja got going with a flurry of boundaries, giving Ashwin company as the latter kept on playing extravagant strokes. The small boundaries seem to have been favouring Jadeja, who cleared the ropes with ease. Ashwin’s departure had little impact on ‘Sir’, as he effortlessly churned out sixes down the ground off the pacers.

The match neared an enthralling end, with 12 required off three balls, and India’s last pair in the middle. Jadeja smashed the third delivery to the fine leg fence, smacked the penultimate delivery for a flat six over cow corner and managed to steal a single to leave honours evened out by the end of the match.

#3 vs South Africa, Mohali Test (2015)

Jadeja plying his trade against South Africa, Mohali 2015

The South African team, carrying an air of vulnerability around them on their visit to India in 2015, fared poorly on the challenging Indian surfaces, as their dodgy batting failed to counter the Indian spin onslaught.

A low scoring match started off with the Indian team compiling a meagre first innings total of 201, 38 of which were runs off Jadeja’s bat at No.7.

A stoic 63 from AB de Villiers could push the total no further than 187 for his team as they fell to the guile of Ravi Ashwin. Jadeja took three wickets, sweeping away the lower order. With India managing just 200 in the second innings, the Proteas got a target of 217. But it wasn’t going to be easy, not against the Indian spin on a deteriorating pitch.

Jadeja ran through the batting order, claiming five wickets for just 21 runs, as the visitors spluttered, choked and finally collapsed for 109, handling India a comfortable 108 run win.

#2 vs England, Champions Trophy final, 2013

Jadeja with the trophy, England 2013

The English team, still searching for their first global 50-over title, came agonisingly close against India in the finals of the Champions Trophy in 2013, but fell short by a mere five runs, imploding under pressure in the final overs.

Rain reduced the match to a 20-over a side encounter, but India, batting first made a mess of their innings, reducing to 66-5 in 13 overs, with Ravi Bopara turning out to be the unlikely hero with the ball.

Jadeja, with the ever-reliant Virat Kohli by his side, provided the final push to give Indian bowlers something to bowl at. He picked up eight runs from the last two balls to give India mental edge as the teams left the field. 130 didn’t seem to be much of a challenge, but the England team inexplicably developed cold feet, struggling to forge a single notable partnership. Jadeja picked up two crucial wickets and was adjudged the Man of the Match for his all-round display. The numbers weren’t impressive, but the impact by the bat in a final turned out to be vital for India.

#1 vs England, Lord’s Test (2014)

Jadeja celebrating his half-century, Lord’s 2014

Jadeja’s coming of age moment as a Test all-rounder came against England in 2014. Before the knock, he hadn’t scored a single Test fifty.

Tottering on 202-5, the Indian team needed a final push to put up a decent target against the hosts. Jadeja’s game-changing, enterprising 68 swung the match towards India, and Ishant Sharma’s 7-for, India managed to claim a memorable victory at Lord’s. With wickets falling at the other end, Jadeja decided to set himself loose on the English bowling, for his bellicose batting was the only way India could have walked out of jail.

65 runs were scored in eight overs after lunch on Day 4, even as the English bowlers were taken aback by the onslaught. Bhuvneshwar Kumar proved to be the ideal folly, scoring a staid fifty to maintain some sanity in the middle

Jadeja celebrated the fifty with a unique blade-brandishing exercise, swooshing the bat like a sword, much like the Rajputana customs that he has grown up in, an image that he was to repeat against England this year.