Former Indian cricketer and legendary leg-spinner Anil Kumble has hailed the Indian left-arm orthodox Ravindra Jadeja. Kumble dissected Jadeja's bowling after the second day's play against the West Indies.
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Jadeja picked up three out of the first four wickets during the second day, in the first innings of the West Indies at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.
'India's most successful spinner', Kumble praises Jadeja
Talking to JioHotstar after the end of play on Day 2, Kumble explained how bowling with pace is key on pitches such as those of the Arun Jaitley Stadium, which tend to slow down as the game progresses.
Kumble hailed Jadeja and even compared him to some of the top pacers, in accordance with the way they operate on pitches that are not particularly conducive for bowlers.
“On a surface like this, where the pace has slowed down, as the game has progressed, hitting that spot just short of a length and hurrying the batter is key. That’s exactly the kind of length Jadeja operates in. It’s one of the main reasons why he has been India’s most successful spinner and bowler so far."
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"It’s similar to how a fast bowler needs to hit the pitch hard on a slightly damp surface to get seam movement. Likewise, for a spinner, you can’t just toss it up; you need to bowl it into the surface, which is what Jadeja does so well," stated Kumble while speaking to JioHotstar.
Jadeja has been India's best left-arm spinner ever since his debut. He, along with Ashwin, was India's backbone in the longest format across countries. While Ashwin has now retired from International cricket, Jadeja continues to dominate the opponents.
Ravindra Jadeja's natural variations from the wickets came in handy: Anil Kumble
Kumble also pointed out Jadeja's natural variations, where he can get one to skid through off the wicket and at the same time generate a good amount of spin from the rough came in handy for India to dismiss Chaderpaul and Chase
"That’s when the variations and vagaries of the pitch come into play. If it hits the rough, there’s a sharp turn due to the pace he bowls at, but if it lands on a decent patch, it can skid through. That makes him so dangerous on such tracks. When he bowls slightly shorter, forcing batters into mistakes, like Roston Chase trying to clear the mid-wicket gap or Chanderpaul getting out to a ball that straightened after Jadeja had been spinning it into him. It was clever bowling from Ravindra Jadeja," he added.
Meanwhile, India continued their dominance as they bowled out the West Indies for 248 in their first innings. The hosts also enforced the follow-on with the visitors still trailing by 270 runs
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