"We might have conceded a big lead" - Aakash Chopra lauds Ravindra Jadeja's knock in ENG vs IND 2025 3rd Test

Former India player Aakash Chopra has lauded Ravindra Jadeja for bailing the Indian team out of a precarious situation in the third Test against England. He noted that the visitors might have conceded a big first-innings lead had the all-rounder gotten out cheaply.

Jadeja scored 72 runs off 131 balls to help India equal England's first-innings total of 387 on Day 3 (Saturday, July 12) at Lord's. The hosts were two for no loss in their second innings at Stumps.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra,' the former India opener praised Jadeja for scoring his third consecutive half-century in the series and bailing his team out of a spot of bother.

"Ravindra Jadeja had another chance to score a century, but it was missed. He was promoted in the batting order. He was sent as soon as Rishabh Pant got out to maintain a left-right combination, and more importantly, he continued from where he left off in the last Test match. He played very well in the last match too," Chopra said (7:00).

"He scored runs at the Edgbaston ground. It was an important contribution as you wanted to bat them out of the game, and that's what the Indian team did. When he got to bat this time, I thought it was a very precarious situation. If a wicket had fallen there, and another wicket had fallen after that, we might have conceded a big lead," he added.

Ravindra Jadeja walked out to bat when India were 248/4 in their second innings. The visitors lost KL Rahul's (100 off 177) wicket soon thereafter before Jadeja added 72 runs for the sixth wicket with Nitish Kumar Reddy (30 off 91) and 50 runs for the seventh wicket with Washington Sundar (23 off 76) to keep them in the game.

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"Ravindra Jadeja's batting prowess is now getting validated" - Aakash Chopra on all-rounder living up to expectations at No. 6

Ravindra Jadeja struck eight fours and a six during his 72-run knock. [P/C: Getty]

In the same video, Aakash Chopra noted that Ravindra Jadeja lived up to expectations after being promoted to No. 6.

"Ravindra Jadeja's batting prowess is now getting validated. It was repeatedly being said that he shouldn't be made to bat below No. 7. You are making him bat at No. 6, which is actually a good thing, and he is living up to the billing in that," he said (7:35).

The cricketer-turned-commentator added that the experienced all-rounder's batting is best suited to Test cricket.

"He always knew how to bat. He is not a mug with the bat. He has always been a good batter. In whichever format you saw him bat, he seemed like a competent batter. Somehow, he is at home in Test cricket. He may start slowly in ODIs and T20s. He needs time, and there is plenty of time in Test cricket," Chopra observed.

To conclude, Aakash Chopra acknowledged that it would have been great had Ravindra Jadeja scored a few more centuries, considering he has been dismissed close to the milestone many times. However, he noted that the 36-year-old's average in England is close to MS Dhoni's, despite not getting to bat up the order frequently, which proves his batting credentials.