Ravichandran Ashwin makes bold confession: 'I'm jealous of Ravindra Jadeja and can never beat him'

India National Cricket Team all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin opened up about his competition with Ravindra Jadeja. He made a bold claim, saying that although he is jealous of his teammate but he admires him a lot.

Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja have been the backbone of the Indian Team in the Tests for the last decade. The duo have been going neck to neck with each other and are making sure that they give their best for the team with both bat and ball.

Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja stepped up for the team in the recently concluded first Test against the Bangladesh National Cricket Team. They both rose to the occasion when it mattered the most, as the team was under pressure. The hosts were reeling at 144/6, and it was then that they joined hands.

Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja came up with a stellar batting performance as they stitched a 199-run partnership that bailed the Indian team out of trouble and put them in a dominating position. While the off-spinner slammed a century, the left-hander ended up hitting 87 runs.

With the ball, they combined to pick wickets in a flash and made a mockery of the Bangladesh batters. Jadeja picked 5 wickets while Ashwin picked 6, which all came in the second innings, as they helped India win the game by the massive margin of 280 runs and go 1-0 up in the series.

Ravichandran Ashwin was asked if he ever saw Jadeja as a rival in the Indian setup. Replying to this, the all-rounder stated that playing alongside always forces players to get ahead of each other. He mentioned that his admiration for Jadeja has gone one step ahead because he knows he can't beat the all-rounder. Speaking to Jio Cinema, he explained:

"Sometimes, when you're in the race along with your co-cricketers, you want to get ahead of one another, even inside a team. It's like brothers growing in arms, right? And then you slowly start admiring one another."

"Now, that admiration has gone one step higher, knowing that I can never beat Jadeja. So, I'm comfortable in my skin, but totally inspired by what he's done."

I'm jealous of him but totally admire him - Ravichandran Ashwin on Ravindra Jadeja

Ravichandran Ashwin further lauded Ravindra Jadeja as a rocket fielder, saying that he has admired him a lot in the last 4-5 years. While talking about his career, he explained:

“Jadeja on the field is a fire. He's a rocket on the field. So, all in all, I envy him. I'm jealous of him but totally admire him. I've learnt to admire him for the last 4-5 years, even more than I have in the past.”

"He's been a very inspirational story. Many of these occasions over the last 3-4 years, when he's walked in to bat, I feel so calm and composed in the dressing room. It’s such an inspirational story about how he's found his off-stump, how he's contributed," he concluded.