Former Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has lauded Ravindra Jadeja after India won the opening ODI against England by four wickets at Nagpur on Thursday. Jadeja returned with impressive figures of 3-26 in the nine overs he bowled and played a key role in skittling out the opposition at 248.
The left-arm orthodox spinner accounted for Joe Root, Jacob Bethell, and Adil Rashid in his fine spell. In fact, many cricket boffins had questioned Jadeja’s place in the team before the game but he was able to prove his mettle.
After taking a three-wicket haul, Jadeja also completed 600 wickets in International cricket. He joined Kapil Dev in the list of Indian players with 600 and 6000 runs across formats.
Jajdeja also became the fifth Indian bowler after Kapil Dev, Ravichandran Ashwin, Anil Kumble, and Harbhajan Singh to take 600 international wickets.
Ashwin, who partnered with Jadeja for the major part of his career, said the all-rounder is much more gifted than him.
Ravichandran Ashwin said on YouTube Channel, “Jadeja is way more gifted than I ever can be. He is a born athlete. His major advantages lie in his physical fitness. He is naturally fit. Even at this age, he can cover the entire area from long on to deep square leg while standing at mid-wicket. I wouldn’t be surprised. And I will be more than happy for him.”
Ashwin noted that the Indian media fails to appreciate the players, who do well at the top level.
“Our media fails to appreciate when a player does well. Whenever we lose, everyone becomes a villain. He dismissed Joe Root. Jadeja always goes under the radar. He is a ‘Jackpot Jango.’ He is +10 in the field, also bowls well and bats in pressure situations as well. We don’t give Jadeja enough credit,” said Ashwin.
The second ODI between India and England will be played at Cuttack on Sunday.
