Ravindra Jadeja is the lone survivor in the churn that has taken place in the Indian Test team over the past two years or so. Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ravichandran Ashwin, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane were all stalwarts of the Indian Test team along with Jadeja. He shared the Indian dressing room with them for a majority, if not the entirety, of his career. While they are all out of the Test setup, the 36-year-old Jadeja remains a crucial cog in it, as shown by his contributions in India’s thrilling tour of England earlier this year and in the ongoing series against the West Indies.
The team management recognised his seniority by making him vice-captain in the West Indies series with Rishabh Pant sitting out. Jadeja is now playing under the captaincy of Shubman Gill, 10 years junior to him, but the ace all-rounder has said that any thoughts of becoming the skipper itself of the team was gone a long time ago. “I don’t think about captaincy. That time I believe is long gone,” Jadeja told reporters after the second day’s play in the second Test against the West Indies in New Delhi.
“I am available for the team. Like any youngster coming and talking to me. Kuldeep (Yadav) comes and asks about certain aspects of bowling, so I do tell him what I feel and what my thinking is. In case of batting, Jaiswal comes and asks and I tell him accordingly what I think should be the mindset keeping track and conditions in mind. Never thought of captaincy and I happy with what I have and do my work and go home,” said Jadeja.
‘These youngsters are shouldering responsibility’
Jadeja took three wickets on Day 2 of the second Test against the West Indies. (Express Photo by Praveen Khanna)
Jadeja said that it is great to see the likes of Gill and Jaiswal plundering runs now that they are mainstays of the Test team. Both players scored centuries on the first two days and helped India pile on a mammoth 518/5. “As a captain, he is performing, so team is getting a lot of help. When captain performs, it obviously lifts the team. He did well in England and also here got a fifty in the first game,” said Jadeja of Gill.
“The best part is that young generation is taking a lot of responsibility, even Yashasvi Jaiswal scored a lot of runs in last two years. These youngsters are not only shouldering the responsibility but also ensuring that they dont leave it on anyone else.
“What stands out for Gill is his consistency as he has been scoring a lot of runs since he became a captain. That is a good sign for Indian cricket. ” Jadeja reserved special praise for Jaiswal and the way he has matured as a batter in these two years of playing Test cricket.
“In case of Jaiswal, he is very clever in terms what he wants to do while batting. When to attack and whom to attack and which shot to play, he has everything planned and that helps him get a lot of success and he plays all those big knocks,”
