“That no-ball cost us the match”: Sunil Gavaskar blames Ravindra Jadeja no ball against Marnus Labuschagne as India lose Indore Test

Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar reckons India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja dismissing Australia batter Marnus Labuschagne off a no-ball in the first innings of the recently concluded third Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2023 Test match cost the home team the match.

It all had happened as early as the fourth over of the Australian innings when Labuschagne’s attempt of cutting a Jadeja delivery saw him playing the ball on to the stumps. Just as the Indians were rejoicing on the back of handing Australia two early blows, a siren was blown to indicate the left-arm spinner’s overstepping.

Yet to score a run at that point in time, Labuschagne ended up scoring 31 (91) in a 96-run second-wicket partnership alongside opening batter Usman Khawaja (60). In the general run of things, these many runs wouldn’t have mattered much in a Test match but it wasn’t such a case in a low-scoring contest.

Bundled out for 109 in the first innings, India conceding an 88-run first-innings lead was enough for the opposition to dominate proceedings in the larger picture at the Holkar Stadium.

Sunil Gavaskar blames Ravindra Jadeja no-ball against Marnus Labuschagne as India lose Indore Test

Part of the commentary panel for the series, Gavaskar was reviewing India’s performance after they lost by 9 wickets within seven sessions. “That no-ball cost us the match,” Gavaskar said on Star Sports Network referring to Jadeja’s error on the first day of the match.

Readers must note that Gavaskar had expressed a similar frustration while calling the match at the time of the incident on Wednesday. “This is not acceptable. He [Ravindra Jadeja] has won a couple of Man of the Match awards but a spinner bowling a no-ball, I think Paras Mhambrey [bowling coach] has to sit down with him and make him bowl from behind. This could cost India,” Gavaskar had said then.

Rohit Sharma blames batters for Indore loss

India captain Rohit Sharma pointed out how Indian batters (including himself) weren’t able to accept a challenge put on display by the Australian bowlers. Had it not been for Cheteshwar Pujara’s 35th Test half-century on Day 2, India would’ve not been able to score 163 in the second innings as well.

“When you lose a Test match, there are a lot of things which didn’t go our way. To start with, we didn’t bat well in the first innings. We understand how important it is to put runs on the board in the first innings,” Sharma told Star Sports Network during the post-match presentation ceremony.

About the author

Dixit Bhargav

Born and brought up in Pathankot, Dixit Bhargav is an engineering and sports management graduate who works as a Cricket Editor at The SportsRush. Having written more than 10,000 articles across more than five years at TSR, his first cricketing memory dates back to 2002 when former India captain Sourav Ganguly had waved his jersey at the historic Lord’s balcony. What followed for an 8-year-old was an instant adulation for both Ganguly and the sport. The optimist in him is waiting for the day when Punjab Kings will win their maiden Indian Premier League title. When not watching cricket, he is mostly found in a cinema hall watching a Punjabi movie.

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