Asia Cup 2018: Comeback of Ravindra Jadeja a Welcome Development - Laxman Sivaramakrishnan

Former India cricketer, Laxman Sivaramakrishnan has welcomed the return of Ravindra Jadeja in place of injured Hardik Pandya for the remainder of the Asia Cup 2018 in the UAE.

Meanwhile, Jadeja made a strong comeback returning with figures of four for 29 in his ten overs. He rattled the Bangladesh batting-order single-handedly, as they managed to post a modest total on the board.

Speaking on the same line, Laxman Sivaramakrishnan advocated for the return of Ravindra Jadeja without a second thought. Furthermore, he also feels Jadeja’s all-round ability puts India in a supreme state in Asia Cup 2018.

“Hardik Pandya’s injury-enforced absence will necessitate at least one change in the XI. If I was a part of the think-tank, I would formalise Ravindra Jadeja’s return to white-ball internationals without a second thought. Jadeja’s recall after having been out of the limited-overs scheme of things for 13 months is a welcome development,” he wrote in TOI.

“He has fought his way back through supreme commitment. Furthermore, apart from his canny bowling, he is worth 10-15 runs on the field alone, and offers a left-handed batting option in the middle-order that can be particularly handy against leg-spinners and left-arm spinners,” he added.

India has a psychological edge over Pakistan

Laxman Sivaramakrishnan feels India will have a slight advantage over their arch-rivals when they meet for the second time in Asia Cup 2018. The defending champions will play Pakistan on Sunday in the Super Four clash in Dubai.

“There is very little about each other that India and Pakistan don’t know, yet there is no discernible pattern whenever they square up. India have the psychological edge going into their Super Four face-off on Sunday, but in tangible terms, beyond the feel-good factor, their eight-wicket win in the league stage will have no bearing on the outcome,” he concluded.