At some stage, it will become necessary to take a close look at the career statistics of Ravindra Jadeja. From starting out as a utility cricketer in the shorter formats to becoming one of the best all-rounders in Test cricket is a remarkable, if not unbelievable, journey. After the ODI debut in February 2009, it took him over three years to play his first game in the longest format, in December 2012.
Initially, he carried into Test cricket the same qualities which made him a useful property in limited-over matches. He was an economical customer with the ball, bowling wicket to wicket, and a brilliant fielder. His hitting ability made him a handy guy lower down the order. Like him, cricket had seen many left-arm spinners who could chip in with a 30 or 40 with the bat.
The numbers from the second half of Jadeja’s Test career, however, underscore the striking improvement he has made, mainly as a batter. His bowling figures don’t show eye-catching fluctuations. He has remained more or less equally effective as a left-arm spinner. Of his 70 Tests, the second 35 have seen him claim 122 wickets at an average of 24.70. In the first 35, this was 165 at 23.73.
Batting has elevated him to the level of elite all-rounders. We are looking mainly at the last 35 Tests because he became an all-rounder, from a bowler who could bat, in the second half of his career. The home record is staggering: A batting average of 55.05 and bowling average of 21.53 for 75 wickets in 17 Tests.
Away from home in this period, Jadeja in 18 Tests has aggregated 838 runs at 36.43, with a century in England. He also made six overseas half-centuries — two each in England, Australia and the West Indies. The bowling record is no less impressive, considering that fast bowlers did most of the damage abroad. Despite that, the left-armer took 47 wickets at 29.76.
🚨Performance of the Day
Ravindra Jadeja produced a classical bowling spell as he scalped his first fifer in Rajkot, his home town, to help India register their biggest win in terms of runs in Tests. @SportsNaresh @CricSubhayan #RavindraJadeja #INDvENG pic.twitter.com/NfF63f75wl
— RevSportz (@RevSportz) February 18, 2024
Enough of the numbers. A look at the circumstances and situations the runs and wickets came in show Jadeja’s true worth. He chips in when the chips are down. In the Birmingham Test in 2022, he in collaboration with Rishabh Pant rescued India from 98-5 and took the total past 400. Both made centuries. England won, but Jadeja proved he was an all-conditions cricketer.
In the home series against Australia in 2023, Jadeja was invariably a contributor with the bat on square turners where frontline batters, including Virat Kohli, struggled. He also took 22 wickets in those four Tests. When the pitch offers help, he is more lethal than Ravichandran Ashwin. Together, they played a big part in India reaching successive World Test Championship finals.
It was known that he could play long innings. Not even many specialist batters can boast of two triple-centuries in first-class cricket. Jadeja used that ability to become a proper batter, who can score a Test century at No. 5 after coming in at 33-3. This was just one instance. He has done well as a No. 6 on multiple occasions.
For a country which has been craving an all-rounder since the retirement of Kapil Dev, Jadeja is that player who seldom gets that acknowledgment. That’s because whenever Kapil is mentioned, people think of a fast bowler. Being a spin-bowling all-rounder, Jadeja is never considered as an heir to the Haryana Hurricane.
Something that sets Jadeja apart from his peers is fielding. There are players who contribute regularly with bat and ball. Few, if any, are as safe in the field. And he can do the job at point and also in the deep. There have been occasions when a catch taken by him or a run-out caused by him has turned matches. At 35, and having suffered injuries, he is still going strong.
Whenever he is cornered or written off, he comes back stronger. Other than skills, this fighting mentality is another of his characteristics. Batter, bowler, fielder and fighter — this is a rare package. This makes him one of his kind in international cricket. Someone not found every now and then.
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