Ravindra Jadeja, Indian all-rounder has advised the Indian batsmen against focusing on the total and instead wants them to bat as long as possible.
From a dominating position of 206-2 overnight at stumps on the first day, Australia stumbled to 338 all-out in Sydney on Friday. Ravindra Jadeja was the unparalleled star of the show as the left-arm spinner picked up four crucial wickets and also affected a stunning run-out to get rid of Steve Smith.
Ravindra Jadeja: Australia Batted Really Well
Talking to the broadcasters after the Australian innings, Ravindra Jadeja commended the Aussie batsmen. He added that the Indian batters also need to capitalize on the remaining 40-odd overs left on Day 2.
“I think they have batted really well. We have to capitalize on the time we have in the middle. I’ll say don’t worry about the total and keep batting for four to five sessions,” said Jadeja.
Steve Smith was Australia’s hero by scoring a century on Friday. The marquee batsman roared back to form with a flawless 131, which included 16 fours.
Ravindra Jadeja got rid of Marnus Labuschagne, who fell just nine runs short of his hundred. The right-handed batsman fell to Ravindra Jadeja’s quicker variation, which bounced awkwardly on him to take the edge to the slips.
Matthew Wade became his next victim as the batsman failed to get under a ball and fell trying to hit it over mid-wicket after scoring 13 runs. The 32-year-old then came back to preclude the Australian tail from wagging and got rid of Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon in quick succession. Both the duo were dismissed without scoring.
Ravindra Jadeja Tried Not To Leak Runs As Pacers Were Bowling Well
Talking about his bowling, Ravindra Jadeja said he tried to be thrifty from his end to allow the fast bowlers to attack from the other end.
“The wicket was pretty flat and slow so I was trying to bowl on the stumps. The ball wasn’t doing much so tried to keep it tight and not leak the runs from my end because Bumrah and other fast bowlers were bowling well,” added Ravindra Jadeja.
To cap his staggering show with the ball, the all-rounder took a pin-point aim at a single stump from square-leg to run out centurion Steve Smith inches short of the crease.
India are 88/2 with Shubman Gill scoring 50 his debut half-century in his 2nd Test. Jasprit Bumrah and Navdeep Saini took 2 wickets apiece while Mohammed Siraj picked 1 wicket to restrict Australia to 338.