Twitter
Advertisement

#INDvAUS: Under-bowled Ravindra Jadeja overachieves

What was more perplexing than Jadeja being under-bowled was Ravichandran Ashwin being over-bowled.

Latest News
article-main
Ravindra Jadeja acknowledges his six-wicket haul by showing the ball to the crowd on Monday
FacebookTwitterWhatsappLinkedin

If India's plan was to attack the Australians from the word go on Monday morning, then Virat Kohli erred in not throwing the ball to Ravindra Jadeja straight up.

Jadeja, who was severely under-bowled on Sunday as well, would've probably wondered what else he could've done to fully earn the confidence of his captain on this wicket.

He was by far India's best bowler on the second day, sending back Steve Smith, Matt Renshaw and Peter Handscomb to severely dent the Aussie charge. Yet, he bowled only 17 overs on Sunday, Kohli frequently opting to go with one of his two quicks instead.

What was more perplexing than Jadeja being under-bowled was Ravichandran Ashwin being over-bowled.

The off-spinner sent down 41 overs on Sunday, returning with just one wicket, a fairly early one in that of David Warner. And Kohli's persistence with Ashwin spilled over to Monday as well, the captain giving him the second over the day and keeping him on from one end throughout.

It allowed Matthew Wade and Mitchell Starc to take the team's lead past 80 resuming at their overnight score of 237/6.

But once Jadeja was introduced in the ninth over of the third day, the hosts took no time to wrap up the Aussie innings.

The left-arm orthodox had Wade plumb in front with a turning ball from over the wicket. He then took just nine balls to get the next two Australian wickets and complete a six-wicket haul, an over-achievement considering how much he was under-bowled.

India batting coach Sanjay Bangar tried to offer an explanation of the lack of overs for Jadeja. "Since we got cheaply in the first innings, bowling fast bowlers a lot was a part of Virat's plan to bring the run rate down. The pacers had an extended spell," he said.

He added that the volume of left-handers in Australia's batting line-up also played a factor. "Because the left-handers were batting at both the ends, we tried bowling over the wicket from Ashwin. In that process, Jadeja couldn't get the number of overs he could have likely got," he added.

Jadeja removed three southpaws (Renshaw, Wade and Josh Hazlewood) out of his six. And while Ashwin sent down 49 overs and took two wickets at a strike rate of 147, Jadeja bowled 21.4 overs and picked up six wickets at a strike rate of 21.66.

In the end, it's all about the numbers.

DID YOU KNOW?

Ravichandran Ashwin picked up two wickets in his 49 overs at a strike rate of 147, while Ravindra Jadeja scalped six batsmen in 21.4 overs at a strike rate of 21.66

Find your daily dose of news & explainers in your WhatsApp. Stay updated, Stay informed-  Follow DNA on WhatsApp.
Advertisement

Live tv

Advertisement
Advertisement