Ravichandran Ashwin and ‘Big cricketer’ slam Ravindra Jadeja’s Lord’s Test knock: ‘Should’ve taken more risk’

Former India National Cricket off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has shared his bold views on the performance of the veteran all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja with the bat in the Lord's Test match.

Ravichandran Ashwin stated that the all-rounder should have taken slightly more risk while chasing the target on the fifth day's play at Lord's in London.

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Ravindra Jadeja's valiant efforts were in vain

India equaled England's first innings score of 387 and then restricted the hosts to 192 on the fourth day to set themselves a target of 193 runs with one and a half days remaining.

In the final innings while chasing the target, Indian batters delivered a horrible performance and the side was reduced to 58/4 at the end of the fourth day's play.

India's poor performance continued on the fifth day as well, as they lost 8 wickets for 112 runs by lunch and were totally out of the game.

However, Ravindra Jadeja showcased a batting masterclass, scoring 61* runs off 181 balls and stitching together 35 and 23 runs with Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj to keep India in the hunt. In the end, Jadeja's efforts went in vain as India got bowled out for 170, facing a 22-run loss.

I was messaging a big cricketer throughout the match - Ravichandran Ashwin

In a video shared on his official YouTube channel, Ravichandran Ashwin revealed that he discussed the twists and turns of the Lord's Test with a 'big cricketer' and they were on the same page regarding Ravindra Jadeja's batting. Both Ashwin and the unnamed cricketer felt that Jadeja should have taken slightly more risk while chasing the total.

"I was messaging a big cricketer throughout the match. I won't take his name, but both of us were discussing the match. Both of us felt that Jadeja should have probably taken a little more risk, but not a lot. The way he played, hats off! Jaddu showed an entire generation of Gen Bold that you can play with patience and skin the Test game," Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.

"He could have picked one moment with Siraj and asked him to go after Bashir because Siraj can hit a clean ball. He can hit a spinner to the leg side with the slope," Ashwin remarked.

You cannot trust the bounce or pace of this pitch - Ravichandran Ashwin

Ravichandran Ashwin, however, also defended his former bowling partner Ravindra Jadeja, saying that the pitch on offer was a tricky one and playing attacking shots was not easy.

"For the experts that say that he could have shown more intent, I ask, how many times has a batter gone down the ground and went into the dressing room? You cannot trust the bounce or pace of this pitch. All the fielders were standing back. What option does Jadeja have?" Ashwin said.

"I felt he played the correct numbers. Ben Stokes' captaincy was very good. He said 'There's 70 runs. If you want to score one run per over and make this score, please do," added Ashwin.