IND vs AUS | Only Ben Stokes can be compared to Ravindra Jadeja, opines Harbhajan Singh
Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh has heaped praise on Ravindra Jadeja, labelling him the best all-rounder at the moment in world cricket alongside Ben Stokes. Harbhajan further appreciated the improvement in Jadeja’s batting by saying that the all-rounder can even score runs up the order.
India dominated Australia in the first two Tests to take an unassailable lead in the ongoing Test series, thanks in large to their spinners who wreaked havoc on the supportive pitches. Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja were absolutely lethal, the latter leading the charts in the Border Gavaskar Trophy with 17 scalps from four innings in 67.1 overs. The 34-year-old's accuracy in Delhi was the main reason behind Australia’s collapse and has earned the world's top-ranked Test all-rounder praise from legendary cricketer Harbhajan Singh.
The former spinner pipped the all-rounder as the best in the world at the moment, opining that only Ben Stokes had the right to be compared to Jadeja.
"Ravindra Jadeja's abilities are something no one can question. He has been brilliant with the ball as usual, but especially with the bat, he has improved so much that even if you send him at No. 4 of No. 5, he will give you the runs you need. In world cricket, I feel he is the best all-rounder at the moment. Only Ben Stokes can be compared with him," Harbhajan told Sports Tak.
Jadeja registered career-best figures of 7/42 in the second innings against the Kangaroos at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, taking advantage of the batters' keenness to pull out the sweep shots throughout the innings. Harbhajan praised the Saurashtra all-rounder for his stump-to-stump line and the relentlessness he displays in his bowling.
“The one thing Jadeja did really good in Delhi was that he ensured there was no compromise on the accuracy. His stump-to-stump line was relentless and the Aussies tried to play the sweep shot, something that won't work on this track with low bounce. The surgery seems to have helped Jadeja as he may no longer be feeling the pain in his knee, helping him pivot at the point of release and get more out of the delivery,” Singh explained.