"Little easier than at home" - Sanjay Manjrekar's huge statement on Ravindra Jadeja's 72 on Day 3 of ENG vs IND 2025 3rd Test

Former Indian batter Sanjay Manjrekar believes all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja's excellent form with the bat in the ongoing England tour has been a product of slightly easier tracks, compared to those at home. The 36-year-old scored a valuable 131-ball 72 in India's first innings of the third Test against England at Lord's.

His vigil helped India recover from a tricky 248/4 and level England with 387 in their first innings. It was Jadeja's third consecutive half-century, following his 89 and 69* in India's massive 336-run victory in the second Test at Edgbaston.

Talking about the veteran all-rounder after Day 3 of the Lord's Test on ESPN Cricinfo, Manjrekar said (1:57):

"If you look at his performance just before this series, against New Zealand on turning pitches and in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, he wasn't great. So, he cashed in when the opportunity to get runs a little more easily, when the challenge was a little easier than at home on those rank turners or against an Australian side on slightly helpful pitches."

He added:

"So, it was his experience coming to the fore and he came into this particular series with some loss of batting form, but I've loved the way he has cashed in."

Jadeja endured a poor 2024/25 season with the bat in Tests, averaging under 26 in eight games. However, he has been in outstanding form in the ongoing England series, averaging 88.66 with three half-centuries in five innings.

"It's not just about the runs, but the grind in the middle" - Sanjay Manjrekar on Ravindra Jadeja

Sanjay Manjrekar hailed Ravindra Jadeja for his ability to play out time and score runs in an old-fashioned way in Tests over the past few years. After a pedestrian start to his Test career, the veteran all-rounder has become a reliable batter in the Indian order, propelling his overall red-ball average to 36.36 in 83 games.

"It's not just about the runs, but the grind in the middle and that's been the big change from his earlier days, where he used to come and throw his bat around to score quickly. Now, he is just about the occupation of crease and very often he gets to play the second new ball, which he does really well," said Manjrekar (1:21) (via the aforementioned source).

He added:

"The amazing thing about Jadeja is he got about 70-odd runs but batted almost four hours and that's been the great facet about his batting performances over the years."

As things stand, with the series tied at 1-1, the Lord's Test is evenly placed with both teams scoring 387 in their respective first innings and the hosts moving to 2/0 in one over of their second innings at stumps on Day 3.