During the third Test match, Jadeja kept forming partnerships with tail-enders, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, but fell short of taking the team home. After trailing 1-2 in the ongoing five-match Test series against the 'Three Lions', Team India will take on the hosts in the fourth Test match on July 23
Greg Chappell (Pic: File Pic)
Former Australian cricketer Greg Chappell feels that Team India's think tank should have given Ravindra Jadeja a clear message — 'go for the win' — during the third Test match against England at Lord's Cricket Ground.
"The truth is, Jadeja was the only recognised batter left. If India were to chase down the target, he had to take calculated risks. His job wasn't to leave balls and collect singles - it was to win the match. That clarity should have come from the dressing room, from the captain. He needed to be told directly: "You are the man who has to get this done. The tail's job is to hang in there with you, but you must go for the win," Chappell wrote in his column in ESPNCricinfo.
During the third Test match, Jadeja kept forming partnerships with tail-enders, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, but fell short of taking the team home.
Jadeja and Bumrah kept batting for three hours. The duo faced 22 overs and scored 35 runs. After Bumrah's dismissal, the left-hander continued to bat alongside Siraj, but the latter lost his wicket in an unfortunate way. Team India suffered a 22-run loss against the hosts at Lord's.
The former cricketer also heaped praise on Jadeja's innings by saying he did what specialist batsmen do.
"The Lord's Test also provided a telling moment with the way Jadeja was managed late in the match. Left with the tail, Jadeja did what many specialist batters do in that situation: he shielded the tail, farmed the strike, and played conservatively. On the surface, it was a disciplined innings. But was it the right one?," he added.
The 76-year-old then drew comparisons between Ben Stokes' knock against Australia in 2019. The incumbent English skipper delivered one of the finest finishes in Test cricket in Leeds that year.
"We saw exactly that from England's Ben Stokes against Australia in Leeds in 2019. In a similar situation, he backed himself and produced one of the best innings of the past 50 years. Importantly, Stokes played that innings knowing that, succeed or fail, his team and leadership would have his back. That's the mindset that needs to be fostered in any great team," said Chappell.
After trailing 1-2 in the ongoing five-match Test series against the 'Three Lions', Team India will take on the hosts in the fourth Test match, which is scheduled to be played in Manchester. The do-or-die match for India will kick off from July 23 onwards.
(With ANI Inputs)
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