I am focusing more on my batting, claims Ravindra Jadeja after hitting his second List A ton

I am focusing more on my batting, claims Ravindra Jadeja after hitting his second List A ton

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After scoring a match-winning 113* for Saurashtra against Jharkhand in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy, Ravindra Jadeja has confirmed that he is focusing more on his batting than bowling in the tournament. Even after being wicketless in the tournament, Jadeja said that his happy executing his plans.

Jadeja, who has been out of the National One Day squad since the Champions Trophy final against Pakistan, has not given up on the hopes of being part of the 2019 World Cup squad as he notched up his second List A ton for Saurashtra which guided them to victory against Jharkhand in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy. 

Kuldeep Yadav replaced Jadeja in India’s One Day squad and has managed to pick up 34 wickets in the 18 matches he has played for the country. These include the 12 wickets that he has clinched in ongoing India’s tour of South Africa. Even after losing his place to Kuldeep and being wicketless in the Vijay Hazare Trophy till now, Jadeja has helped his team win two matches by scoring 156 runs for them.

“If I am satisfied with the way I have bowled, I do not think much about other things. If I am executing my plans, I am happy,” Jadeja told the Express.

The 29-year-old was taken off from the bowling attack against Jharkhand due to an injury to his torso but still came onto bat to guided his team to victory.

“The pain was unbearable sometimes while playing certain shots. But this was really important for my self-confidence. It is morale boosting. To chase the target (330) under the circumstances is really special for me,” said the Indian spinner.

A certain discussion with MS Dhoni seems to have cajoled him. Asked what his plans are to wear the ‘blue’ again, he said, “I am quite happy with the way I am bowling. In fact, I am focusing more on my batting now. I do not want to be a player who is known for hitting those 20-odd runs. I want to play the anchor role, just like I did today.”

Ravindra Jadeja has always been known for his flashy batting towards the end of the innings, but now he aims to play with more responsibility and wants to bat high up the batting order so as to anchor the innings.

Jadeja has credited Mahendra Singh Dhoni for his knock against Jharkhand and said, “Mahi bhai told me that I will get batting opportunities in the IPL this year. He said that I have the ability of a proper batsman, and I am not the flash in the pan type of batsman. And I should think like that.It was really encouraging to me. So, I am concentrating more on the batting aspect of my game and trying to get used to playing the anchor role.”

Ravindra Jadeja has been preparing for the 2019 World Cup by strengthening his bowling armoury by varying his pace and said, “It (pace variation) is the most important thing. I am trying to do that. I am using different angles. If I get wickets owing to mistakes of batsmen, I am not satisfied from the inside. If I think I have done the things I wanted to do, like varying the pace, I am content with that.”

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