Jacques Kallis. Ben Stokes. Ian Botham. Kapil Dev. Sir Garfield Sobers. These are some of the names that are often debated when one talks about the greatest all-rounder to have ever played the sport.
However, on most occasions, one name flies under the radar, and that is none other than India’s Ravindra Jadeja, who continues to go strong in Test cricket. The left-arm batter and spinner has amassed more than 7000 runs across formats and also has 600 wickets to his name in international cricket. He will next be seen in action in the upcoming two-Test series against Sri Lanka.
Ahead of the first Test in Galle, Jadeja received high praise from former England pacer Stuart Broad, who hailed his longevity. However, Broad also admitted to getting ‘annoyed’ every time Jadeja brought out his trademark sword celebration on crossing the 50-run mark.
Broad said he never understood why Jadeja would celebrate so much on reaching a half-century when there were players who scored centuries or double tons and still did not celebrate as much.
“His celebration used to annoy me a bit, like, what’s this guy waving his bat around for a 50? I remember saying to him on a few occasions that batters actually average 50 and that you are carrying on like this. It’s flair, but I would have saved it for a hundred,” Broad said on the For the Love of Cricket podcast.
“His numbers are phenomenal to the point where they never knew whether to play him or Ravi Ashwin in England. That’s a testament to Jadeja,” added Broad.
‘Nightmare’
Jadeja has a remarkable record against England, averaging more than 40 with the batin Tests, recording three centuries and 11 fifties.
Jos Buttler, who was involved in the same conversation with Broad, described Jadeja as a “nightmare”, calling him a proper gutsy player. Jadeja was at his best in the last tour of England, scoring more than 500 runs at an average of 86, including one century and five fifties.
“He is a nightmare to face, especially in India. With him, I think about moments, and he’s a proper gutsy player. With his batting, especially when the game was tight, he always seemed to stand up. When his team needed runs, he could do it. He had a bit of a hybrid role as well, where sometimes he would come out at 5 with the ball swinging around. He’s an underrated batter in a funny way,” said Buttler.