Email
Print
ShareGuwahati: Ravindra Jadeja's scores so far in this series are: 5, DNB, DNB, 7 & 23. In Hyderabad, he used up 24 balls for his 23 and but for his inability to find the gaps at a crucial time, India would have perhaps not fallen short by 3 runs. He was eventually dismissed via a silly run out, his second consecutive one.
Little wonder then that the youngster is under tremendous pressure going into the sixth ODI which India must win to stay alive in the series. Jadeja has every reason to feel insecure about his berth but if Saturday's happenings are any indication, the Indian think-tank is ready to put its money where its mouth is.
At Team India's optional nets on Saturday, coach Gary Kirsten singled out the youngster for some special attention. While Harbhajan Singh was busy thrashing rookie Sudeep Tyagi, Kirsten, a phenomenal left-handed batsman in his days, was seen teaching Jadeja the very basics.
For the next 45 minutes, the 20-year-old listened in rapt attention as Kirsten went through the works -- from backlift, foot position, movement on the pitch to even batting grip. The tips continued even during the throw-ins, with the coach applauding Jadeja's backfoot drives and cuts which looked increasingly similar to the South African's trademark shots.
There was no special session for practising running between the wickets but during the media interaction, captain MS Dhoni made it clear that the Saurashtra batsman is a future investment keeping in mind the 2011 World Cup. "He is doing well," he said in response to a question about the point of keeping Jadeja in the XI. "He has been bowling, fielding well and as the series develops, you will find that he has become an even better batsman."
