Jaydev Unadkat pins hopes for turnaround on Sri Lanka series performance

What's the story?

Left-arm pacer Jaydev Unadkat, included in the Indian side to play the recently-concluded three T20s against Sri Lanka, is hoping that his performances in these games can help him turnaround a topsy-turvy international career thus far. "This series has really helped me gain the confidence needed at the international level,” Unadkat said at the post-match press conference.

In case you didn't know..

Unadkat first played for India in a Test match at Centurion in 2010 as a replacement for the injured Zaheer Khan. Though that remains his only Test so far, he made his ODI and T20 international debut in 2013 and 2016, respectively. It was against Sri Lanka in the first T20 of the series that he returned to the team after one-and-a-half years.

The heart of the matter

Unadkat impressed immediately on his comeback to the side by claiming brilliant figures of 1/7, 1/22 and 2/15 in the T20 series, which India went on to sweep 3-0. "It was just not coming to me when I played for India the previous time. But yes, this series has definitely been a turnaround for me and I really needed [it] at this point in my career and I would be really happy to take it forward from here," Unadkat, who represents Saurashtra in domestic cricket, said.

What's next?

India's next limited-overs assignments will be on the tour of South Africa where after the 3 Tests, they would be playing 6 ODIs and 3 T20s. Though he has not been selected in the ODI squad, he will be hoping that his excellent performance against Sri Lanka can earn him the attention of the selectors when it is the time to announce the T20 squad.Author's Take

A key benefit Unadkat brings is the variety he brings to the side with his left-arm pace. Since Zaheer Khan, India have not had a left-arm fast bowler who has consistently maintained his place in the side with the likes of Ashish Nehra only rarely considered for T20 cricket in the last two years.