India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja (66*) hasn’t just bailed the team out of trouble in the ongoing first Test match against Australia but also put them in a commanding position by the end of the second day at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium.
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Jadeja followed an 11th Test five-wicket haul yesterday with an 18th Test half-century today. Considering the effortless manner in which he and fellow all-rounder Axar Patel (52*) batted during their unbeaten 81-run eighth-wicket partnership in the third session, it wouldn’t be astonishing to see Jadeja reach a fourth Test century tomorrow.
Jadeja, 34, came out to bat when India had lost half their batters in the 60th over. As much as as it is being iterated, it is worth a mention that Jadeja was batting for the first time at the highest level in over five months. Not jittery or nervous or out of touch, the southpaw didn’t give a single chance to anyone to assume that he was batting in a Test match after seven months.
It was in an early phase of his innings that Jadeja hit boundaries off Australian off-spinners Nathan Lyon and Todd Murphy to look confident in the middle. Although aided by luck on a few occasions, Jadeja’s defense was up to the mark in not letting good balls trouble him. On the contrary, Jadeja made it a point to punish the bad balls for boundaries making optimum use of tired Australian outfielders.
Perhaps a bit relaxed due to both an advantageous first innings total and Patel batting at a better strike rate from the other end, Jadeja was seen adapting to the role of a second-fiddle to his Gujarati teammate in the last 30 minutes or so of the day.
Ravindra Jadeja last 10 Test innings list (updated on February 11, 2023)
It is an achievement in itself that a bowling all-rounder’s batting innings has become a point of discussion among both experts and fans. It is noteworthy that Jadeja has scored 475 runs in his last 10 Test innings at an average of 52.77 including two centuries and half-centuries each.
Innings 1 – 70 (185) vs Australia in Nagpur
Innings 2 – 23 (58) vs England in Birmingham
Innings 3 – 104 (194) vs England in Birmingham
Innings 4 – 22 (45) vs Sri Lanka in Bengaluru
Innings 5 – 4 (14) vs Sri Lanka in Bengaluru
Innings 6 – 175* (228) vs Sri Lanka in Mohali
Innings 7 – 0 (2) vs New Zealand in Kanpur
Innings 8 – 50 (112) vs New Zealand in Kanpur
Innings 9 – 17 (59) vs England in London (The Oval)
Innings 10 – 10 (34) vs England in London (The Oval)
