Ravindra Jadeja is now truly a reliable force when it comes to batting in Test cricket. The left-handed batter scored more than 500 runs in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy against England last year, and the team management has shown ample faith in the Saurashtra all-rounder. However, there was a time when the veteran even batted as low as No.8 and 9, and he has now admitted to his confidence being shaken after being asked to come out so low in the order.
On the sidelines of the first Test against Sri Lanka in Galle, Jadeja admitted to having doubts about himself in his initial few days, saying his confidence was shaken when he was coming out to bat after Ravichandran Ashwin on some occasions.
The 37-year-old has a solid record with both bat and ball in the Ranji Trophy, and he is one of the few batters to have also hit a triple century in India’s premier red-ball domestic competition. However, Jadeja said that having doubts about oneself is common when players enter international cricket, and this can happen when one doesn’t get the desired batting position.
“If you look at my entire Ranji Trophy career, my average is more than 60. Whatever Ranji Trophy and Duleep Trophy first-class cricket I have played domestically, my batting average is more than 60. So somewhere, I had that belief that I had that ability. But sometimes what happens is that you come into the Indian team and you don’t get that batting number,” said Jadeja in a conversation with Sanjay Manjrekar on the Sony Sports Network.
“And sometimes the situation is such that I have batted at number 8 and 9 as well. So, when you are sitting in the dressing room with your pads on, next to you, a fast bowler is selecting a ball. So seeing all those things, my morale and my confidence would go down,” he added.
‘Oh man’
Speaking of Jadeja, there have been 32 innings in Tests where he has batted at No.8, while he has walked out at No.9 on 12 occasions. At No.8, he averages 34.22, while his average at the next number goes significantly higher to a little over 40.
However, despite these staggering numbers, Jadeja said he didn’t feel too good in these positions, as the team often expected to be bowled out soon. At No.8, Jadeja has scored 924 runs, while the left-hander has more than 200 runs at No.9. It is worth mentioning that Jadeja remained unbeaten on several occasions, as he ran out of partners at the other end.
Over the years, Jadeja has played under the captaincy of MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, and during these three tenures, the left-hander batted as low as No.8 or 9 on some occasions.
“Sometimes you think to yourself, ‘I have to go and score runs.” And in that same dressing room, a fast bowler is selecting the ball, thinking, “Come on, now bowling is coming.” So because of all those things, my confidence was literally disturbed. I would think, “Oh man, what is this? The team doesn’t even have confidence in me,” said Jadeja.
