Rajkot: Since making his debut against England at Nagpur in December 2012, Ravindra Jadeja has played 69 Tests. However, he would’ve played plenty more Tests and white-ball games for India but for the numerous injuries that he has suffered during the course of a fabulous career during which he has taken 280 wickets and scored 2893 runs.
Returning after a hamstring injury forced him to miss the second Test against England at Visakhapatnam, for the third Test of the series in his hometown Rajkot, Jadeja, now 35 and perhaps realising that he isn’t getting any younger, made it clear that he now wants to protect his body, no matter how.
However, Jadeja stressed that even though he’s one of the best fielders in the world, his role in the field would be limited. “I would like to give my 100% and save my body and keep away from diving when not required. That’s it. I don’t think about that too much because it has happened before. As the match progresses, the body will get used to the flow and you will forget that there was an injury. I will get into rhythm in one or two days,” Jadeja told the reporters here.
Even though he asserted that he would protect his body on the field, there’s no guarantee that Jadeja won’t get injured yet again. “I can get injured again tomorrow. I can work on my body more smartly and do it carefully and hope there will be no problem. But there is no guarantee,” he cautioned.
Thanks to his frequent injuries, Jadeja’s visits to the BCCI’s National Cricket Academy for rehabilitation have become routine. In fact, due to his rapid injury breakdowns, since the past two years, the left-arm spinner has missed action as many as five times. Since 2021, Jadeja has hurt his thumb, forearm, rib, knee and most recently, his hamstring.
The frequency of his injuries have naturally left Jadeja frustrated. “It is frustrating but the cricket has increased these days and that is at the back of the mind always. I can’t hide anywhere in the field, I am always in hotspots in any format and that may be the reason. The ball comes to me often. There is an expectation from the team that I take a good catch or field well and that’s good,” Jadeja explained.
‘Destiny that Ashwin would take his 500th wicket here’
Jadeja was pleased with the fact that his ‘spin twin’ for the past decade, veteran off-spinner R Ashwin, was set to cross the 500 Test wickets landmark at Rajkot, his hometown, something he put down to “destiny.”
“He will definitely complete his 500 wickets on this ground. I am very excited because I have been playing with him for 12-13 years and to achieve this milestone of completing 500 Test wickets is a really big thing. I thought he would complete it in the first Test but it’s okay, whatever is written in destiny… he will complete his 500 wickets in Rajkot, in my hometown,” Jadeja said.
Returning after a hamstring injury forced him to miss the second Test against England at Visakhapatnam, for the third Test of the series in his hometown Rajkot, Jadeja, now 35 and perhaps realising that he isn’t getting any younger, made it clear that he now wants to protect his body, no matter how.
However, Jadeja stressed that even though he’s one of the best fielders in the world, his role in the field would be limited. “I would like to give my 100% and save my body and keep away from diving when not required. That’s it. I don’t think about that too much because it has happened before. As the match progresses, the body will get used to the flow and you will forget that there was an injury. I will get into rhythm in one or two days,” Jadeja told the reporters here.
Even though he asserted that he would protect his body on the field, there’s no guarantee that Jadeja won’t get injured yet again. “I can get injured again tomorrow. I can work on my body more smartly and do it carefully and hope there will be no problem. But there is no guarantee,” he cautioned.
Thanks to his frequent injuries, Jadeja’s visits to the BCCI’s National Cricket Academy for rehabilitation have become routine. In fact, due to his rapid injury breakdowns, since the past two years, the left-arm spinner has missed action as many as five times. Since 2021, Jadeja has hurt his thumb, forearm, rib, knee and most recently, his hamstring.
The frequency of his injuries have naturally left Jadeja frustrated. “It is frustrating but the cricket has increased these days and that is at the back of the mind always. I can’t hide anywhere in the field, I am always in hotspots in any format and that may be the reason. The ball comes to me often. There is an expectation from the team that I take a good catch or field well and that’s good,” Jadeja explained.
‘Destiny that Ashwin would take his 500th wicket here’
Jadeja was pleased with the fact that his ‘spin twin’ for the past decade, veteran off-spinner R Ashwin, was set to cross the 500 Test wickets landmark at Rajkot, his hometown, something he put down to “destiny.”
“He will definitely complete his 500 wickets on this ground. I am very excited because I have been playing with him for 12-13 years and to achieve this milestone of completing 500 Test wickets is a really big thing. I thought he would complete it in the first Test but it’s okay, whatever is written in destiny… he will complete his 500 wickets in Rajkot, in my hometown,” Jadeja said.