On the first day of the 4th Test match at The Oval, India collided with England and had a poor performance, losing by less than 200 runs. Many fans were bemused by the notion that all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja was put fifth, and veteran Indian cricketer VVS Laxman explains why.
The ground, according to Laxman, offered a lot to England bowling attack, and they had already established a good pattern bowling right-handers. As a result, Jadeja was elevated to No. 5 to disrupt the home bowlers’ pattern and retain the left-right pair. Unfortunately, the outcome was not favorable, as Lefty was removed from the game after only having 10 runs.
This would have been planned in the team meeting: Laxman
“Left-right combination would be the thinking behind sending Jadeja at No.5. There was a lot of help for the four England pacers in the air and off the wicket. When there is a left-right combination, you can break the rhythm of the opposition. Jadeja is batting really well of late and has three triple hundreds in first-class cricket. This was not the spot decision, this would have been planned in the team meeting,” said Laxman.
At the beginning, all-rounder Shardul Thakur’s exploits with the bat were the main talking point. With the exception of Virat Kohli, all of India’s batsmen failed to get runs, and Thakur quickly quickened the innings. He hit a crucial 57 off 36 balls. Laxman also complimented the Mumbai player on his performance.
“When you are a top-order batsman, there is a fear of failure. But when you bat at No.8 with the tailenders, you can play fearlessly. Thakur deserves praise for the way he batted. He scored an important half-century, not only for Shardul Thakur but also for Team India because they could have got bowled out inside 150. It was an important inning just the way he played in Brisbane and brought the momentum in India’s favour. I will hope that he contributes with wickets too,” Laxman added.
