Ravindra Jadeja's Uncharacteristic Shot Disappoints Sunil Gavaskar
Ravindra Jadeja departed after scoring 28 (Twitter)
Former Indian captain, Sunil Gavaskar, voiced his displeasure over Ravindra Jadeja's rash shot during the morning session on Day 4 of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy's fourth and final Test in Ahmedabad. The all-rounder's uncharacteristic shot came as a surprise, considering his solid partnership with Virat Kohli on Day 3.
In the 8th over of the day, Jadeja attempted to take on off-spinner Todd Murphy. When the ball was flighted, the southpaw responded eagerly and drove it through the covers. However, the Australian bowler persisted with the tactic, and Jadeja was nearly caught in mid-on.
In the following delivery, the Saurashtra based cricketer hit the ball straight into the hands of Usman Khawaja at mid-on, ending his innings on 28 off 84 balls. The abrupt end of the 64-run partnership gave Australia the much-needed impetus early in the morning, much to the chagrin of Jadeja, who appeared disheartened after Khawaja completed the catch. Meanwhile, Kohli, who was at the non-striker's end, was visibly frustrated by the early wicket, which hindered India's chances of pushing for quick runs.
Gavaskar, who was commentating during the time, expressed his exasperation live on air, stating that he struggled to comprehend the shot that led to Jadeja's downfall. He added that the Indian skipper, the changing room, and coach Rahul Dravid were unlikely to be impressed with the shot.
"What was the need to play such a shot? Virat Kohli is not impressed, the changing room is not going to be impressed, I can tell you that. Rahul Dravid, the coach is not going to be impressed with this shot."
The Indian veteran further opined that the dynamic cricketer had played a responsible innings until that point and questioned the need for such a careless shot.
At the time of writing this article, India has amassed a total of 419 runs for the loss of five wickets, with Virat Kohli standing tall on 110 runs and Axar Patel remaining unbeaten on 14. Despite the commendable efforts of the Indian batsmen, the team still trails the Australians by 61 runs.
The duo will now aim to narrow the deficit and amass some rapid runs to give the Indian bowlers a fighting chance of securing a victory. With Kohli's form and Patel's ability to strike the ball, the pair could potentially turn the tide of the match in India's favour.