Kedhar Jadhav :player without X factor

[tweaker]

Jadhav had been overwhelmed by the occasion on his One-Day International debut in November 2014. He'd walked out to bat in the middle of a tricky run-chase against Sri Lanka in Ranchi. He scored a breezy 20 and then in an exaggerated attempt to demonstrate his hitting prowess, was cleaned up by Ajantha Mendis. For all his domestic exploits, Jadhav, aged 30 then, didn't seem cut out for the big league. But that was to be his only international game until a second-string side toured Zimbabwe the following year.

 

But that national team call-up had come in the backdrop of one of the most memorable individual seasons in India's premier domestic seasons. The Maharashtra batsman had reeled off six centuries en route to aggregating 1223 runs in the 2013-14 Ranji Trophy season - the fifth-highest aggregate in a single edition of the tournament. He then sparkled in a finishing role for Delhi Daredevils and essayed three match-winning hands with a broken wrist in India A's title triumph in the quadrangular series in Australia.

While his domestic form tapered off in the following season with a rehabilitation program for his injured hand, Jadhav remained on the peripheries of the national side, his best moment coming via a century for an Ajinkya Rahane-led Indian side on the tour of Zimbabwe in 2015. He travelled with the side to the African nation again this year but had only three DNBs to show against his name at the end of the ODI series.

 

As a fringe player, you can get only so many chances. At 31 in India, if you've not made a case for selection, chances are you'll likely miss the train for good. Unless, the planets realign mysteriously like they have done for Jadhav. India, eight games out from the start of their Champions Trophy, slipped mysteriously into an ODI rut after the 2015 World Cup. Six of their nine victories in this period had come on tours to Zimbabwe while the team finished second-best in series against Bangladesh, South Africa and Australia.

The alarming dip in the fortunes of Suresh Raina, who could double up as a handy off spinner, affected the team balance and when the southpaw picked up a viral fever just ahead of the New Zealand ODIs, there was an opportunity for someone to stake a claim to a middle order berth. With India open to experimentation ahead of the Champions Trophy, here was a chance to potentially play at least two-three games in a row. Jadhav took notice and grabbed it by the scruff of the neck.

For Jadhav to create any impact in the team, he'd have to bowl because a pure batsman is a dispensable commodity in the current ODI set-up. And so Jadhav, just a solitary wicket in first-class cricket, began rolling his arm over in the nets under the watchful eyes of head coach Anil Kumble. Both Dhoni and Kumble liked what they saw of Jadhav during an extended bowling session in Dharamsala - an easy, repeatable action, decent loop and most importantly - an ability to land deliveries in half decent areas. They took a chance with him. And it paid off.

In Dharamsala, in seaming conditions, Jadhav was brought on to bowl ahead of both Axar Patel and Amit Mishra. He should have had a wicket off the first over but struck twice in the second, off successive balls, to finish with figures of 2 for 6. In New Delhi, he came on to bowl when Kane Williamson and Tom Latham looked set to give New Zealand a monumental score and instantly ended the 120-run stand by trapping Latham with a darter from around the stumps.

 

 He duped Williamson into playing early into a sweep while he ensured the ball didn't turn by using only the forefingers to push the ball. He was gifted a second wicket by Corey Anderson who hit a full toss straight to mid-off while Latham was sucked into an uppish drive off a tossed up delivery. In all, he's bowled 60 balls, conceded 46 and taken six wickets. Not bad for someone who is strictly a sixth bowling option.

Jadhav's proclivity for wickets has taken even Dhoni by surprise. The Indian captain had largely wanted to tie down a bevy of left-handers in the New Zealand ranks but the Maharashtra off-spinner has exceeded expectations. Now he'll be challenged to bowl to the right-handers and try being just as effective. "I have no clue how he gets wickets, that's the reality of it. It is important that someone in the top 5-6 gives you some overs so that there's no pressure on Hardik to complete his 10," Dhoni said of his new find after the Mohali win.

 

"I'm hoping that Jadhav improves even more and even to the right-handers, he's able to bowl. He's been the surprise package. He's got crucial wickets. I feel if you can get wickets in the middle you can restrict the opposition."

What Jadhav provides is a fix for multiple gaps in the Indian ODI set-up, just the kind Dhoni so dearly seeks. He can offer good value, if not better what Raina offered to the strong Indian ODI teams of the past. He's also a more than decent No. 6 batsman, capable of being groomed for the finishing job. But for a minor indiscretion which cost him his wicket, his 37-ball 41 in New Delhi was just the kind of innings expected of him from a pressure situation. Additionally, Jadhav can also open up a place in the squad on overseas assignments by acting as the back-up wicketkeeper.

Having addressed his fitness concerns, Jadhav is a safe, if not an electric presence on the field like Raina but his versatility could be a thorn blocking the southpaw's return to the side and keep even the likes of Manish Pandey or Ajinkya Rahane on tenterhooks. With Dhoni moving up the order, Jadhav will soon get more opportunities with the bat. If he can prove his worth there, India may just found an unlikely solution.

[tweaker]

Jadhav bowled well today ,was economical & would had a wicket ,but dropped by Mishra 

[tweaker]

India picked Kedar Jadhav for the ODI series against New Zealand on the strength of his recent batting numbers. In the Quadrangular A-team one-day series in Australia, he scored 254 runs at 63.50, finishing as the tournament's fourth-highest run-getter. But his first big act against New Zealand would be with the ball.

 

MS Dhoni's decision to throw the ball to Jadhav in Dharamsala wasn't surprising in itself; he had spent a long time bowling offspin in the nets under coach Anil Kumble's supervision on the eve of the game. It was his immediate success that made heads turn. In the first over he bowled, Jadhav nearly had James Neesham lbw, but Bruce Oxenford turned down a strong shout.

 

Jadhav, though, had the last word on it, getting both Neesham and Mitchell Santner out in his next over. In Delhi, he broke a 120-run stand by trapping Tom Latham in front, and took his best ODI figures, 3 for 29, in Mohali. Before the start of the series, Jadhav had one List A wicket; now he has seven.

 

Jadhav's success with the ball has surprised many, not least because they had no clue he could bowl. Former India bowling coach Bharat Arun, who works with Royal Challengers Bangalore in the same capacity, has never seen Jadhav bowl. "He was only a keeper for RCB so he never bowled in the nets," Arun says. "He only used to work on his keeping. Maybe occasionally he would have bowled for fun on one or two occasions, but never seriously."

 

Jadhav says it was Dhoni and Kumble's idea to groom him as a part-time bowler. The decision, it is believed, was born out of necessity; Dhoni wanted someone to replicate Suresh Raina's role - a middle-order batsman who could sneak in a handful of overs. Raina's failure to recover from an illness has givenJadhav an extended run, and he has now made it that much more difficult for Raina to come back into the side.

 

While India's batsmen have played Jadhav comfortably in the nets, New Zealand have struggled to decode him. Different theories have been offered as to why this has been the case. Arun feels it's the low point of his release, a consequence of his short stature, that has proved deceptive; Jadhav himself has credited his success to his round-arm action and variations in pace.

 

The questions, though, remain: how long is the honeymoon going to last? Is Jadhav a fluke or a sustainable solution to India's middle-overs bowling problems? The former Maharashtra coach Surendra Bhave, who has worked with Jadhav since his under-19 days, says the 31-year-old is a multifaceted cricketer.

 

"He is an allrounder in the true sense, because without too much of an experience in keeping wickets in first-class cricket, he did exceptionally well in IPL as a keeper," Bhave says. "With people who have multiple skills, at times you feel that their success has been flukey, but you can't call it a fluke because he has bowled well in all the four ODIs so far. So obviously he has got some skillsets that were observed by the captain."

 

During his time as Maharashtra coach, Bhave says he used Jadhav as a partnership-breaker in List A and T20 matches, and says his willpower stood out in pressure situations. "It's fantastic for Kedar to have delivered because even a proper bowler gets nervous bowling his first over," Bhave says. "That says a lot about his temperament and mental strength. He has got this gift of making subtle speed changes in his bowling and he does that consciously."

Bhave, however, says Jadhav's true test will come when he is required to prove himself with the bat. In the three innings Jadhav has batted in so far in the series, he has scored 10*, 41 and 0. "He has done well as a bowler, but we don't know whether it will last for few more games or he actually becomes an allrounder," Bhave says. "We [Jadhav and I] have spoken twice or thrice [during the series] and Jadhav himself knows that he has to make a big score because this is a very strong outfit.

 

"Whenever he gets an opportunity, he has to nail it; he has to make a big score. His batting in India A and List A cricket has got him there, and he has actually been batting very well."

Arun says Kohli has been a big influence on Jadhav, especially when it comes to fitness. "Jadhav is a really hardworking cricketer, puts in a lot of effort at the gym and does a lot of work on his batting," Arun says. "He would work alongside Virat in the gym. I guess that's where he would have started improving."

Bhave says Jadhav has never looked out of depth at the international level. "If you look at his List A cricket and India A cricket, his record in white-ball cricket has been impeccable," he says. "He has been averaging around 50 in List A cricket and his consistent performances for India A tell us he's pretty happy in the position he is in. At no point in time Kedar suffers from the feeling of inadequacy at the international level, and that's his strength.

 

"When you are a non-regular bowler, to bowl well in all the four matches is in itself a good achievement. That has an effect on his batting - when he is batting he is extremely at ease and he is extremely confident. Even when you saw him in under-19 cricket, you saw that this boy was exceptional."

[Cricketics]

This is a big game for Jadhav. Raina is definitely going to be Dhoni's first choice. He might even be dropped and forgotten if he doesn't do well with the bat today or something magical with the ball.

[TNAmarkFrmIndia]

The issue with Kedar Jadhav is that he hasn't had that show-stealing performance yet when the chips were down and it was all upto him to take the team out of trouble.

 

All this talk of him not being able to play pace well is maniacal (see what I did there?).

[express bowling]

The biggest factor to look for in Jadhav is....can he hit  the big shots ?

 

He is batting at No.6 and his primary role would be to slog in the last 10 overs at a high SR.

 

 

Today was not an ideal test with the pitch behaving very slowly in the last 10 overs.

 

Axar has actually impressed with the bat.

Edited October 29, 2016 by express bowling

[G_B_]

sensible player Kedar

 

but i tend to agree with the OP. Lacks the x factor.

[renjith]

Not sure how some of you got to the conclusion that jadhav cannot play quick bowlers in overseas pitches.

Edited October 29, 2016 by renjith

[jalebi_bhai]

2 hours ago, express bowling said:

The biggest factor to look for in Jadhav is....can he hit  the big shots ?

 

He is batting at No.6 and his primary role would be to slog in the last 10 overs at a high SR.

 

 

Today was not an ideal test with the pitch behaving very slowly in the last 10 overs.

 

Axar has actually impressed with the bat.

More than impressed, I'm happy. Axar is tailor-made for LOIs. On pitches like today, he'll be hard to play. He is a good fielder. If he could become a third of the batsman Yuvi was for us, he'll be a LOI main stay once Jaddu's time is up.

[express bowling]

6 minutes ago, jalebi_bhai said:

More than impressed, I'm happy. Axar is tailor-made for LOIs. On pitches like today, he'll be hard to play. He is a good fielder. If he could become a third of the batsman Yuvi was for us, he'll be a LOI main stay once Jaddu's time is up.

 

It looks like there is an attempt going on create a separate set of players for LOIs....barring the obvious all-format players like Kohli. That actually makes a lot of sense with so many matches going on there days and the different skillsets that are required for the longer and shorter versions.

 

Keeping this in mind, Jaddu has been an outstanding test bowler at home but has been just about decent with the ball and disappointing with the bat in ODIs.

 

It is possible that Axar might even be the preferred one over Jaddu in ODIs. Provided he keeps on performing ofcourse.

[jalebi_bhai]

8 minutes ago, express bowling said:

 

It looks like there is an attempt going on create a separate set of players for LOIs....barring the obvious all-format players like Kohli. That actually makes a lot of sense with so many matches going on there days and the different skillsets that are required for the longer and shorter versions.

 

Keeping this in mind, Jaddu has been an outstanding test bowler at home but has been just about decent with the ball and disappointing with the bat in ODIs.

 

It is possible that Axar might even be the preferred one over Jaddu in ODIs. Provided he keeps on performing ofcourse.

Kumble initiative? Probably.

 

It's something we should've started doing a long time back though. Each format has its own specialists.  

[express bowling]

4 minutes ago, jalebi_bhai said:

Kumble initiative? Probably.

 

It's something we should've started doing a long time back though. Each format has its own specialists.  

 

Probably. He has the foresight.

[jalebi_bhai]

11 minutes ago, express bowling said:

 

Probably. He has the foresight.

Engineer's mind. Always structured. 

[Yoda-esque]

His bowling of all things has been a revelation but don't see him as a long term prospect......He has to be Mike Hussey level good to be continued at his age as a long term prospect....we need young blood in LOI's.

 

I am calling it now....Jadhav cannot play anything more than 140K even when delivered gun barrel straight but with a little bounce and anything over 135K's when there is a little movement.

 

Got rewarded for his domestic performances...saw taste of international cricket...that's about it.....this is a waste of investment

If Rohit Flop sharma can play for as long, surely Kedar can

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[Vijy]

On 10/29/2016 at 11:04 AM, express bowling said:

 

It looks like there is an attempt going on create a separate set of players for LOIs....barring the obvious all-format players like Kohli. That actually makes a lot of sense with so many matches going on there days and the different skillsets that are required for the longer and shorter versions.

 

Keeping this in mind, Jaddu has been an outstanding test bowler at home but has been just about decent with the ball and disappointing with the bat in ODIs.

 

It is possible that Axar might even be the preferred one over Jaddu in ODIs. Provided he keeps on performing ofcourse.

Yes, Axar has always struck me as more suited to LOIs. Hits the ball harder and further than Jaddu, and his bowling seems to be more economical. I wish either bowler was a bit more penetrative though.

[tweaker]

Kedhar should get a oppurtunity today ,he had a decent series against NZ

[tweaker]

If Kedhar Jadhav is not successful against England, knowing our selection committee it is more likely Raina will be in the squad than younger player like Hooda,Kishan,Pant etc

[tweaker]

Kedhar Jadhav again making full use of the oppurtunity

[tweaker]

50 now

[Stuge]

nazar lagane wala thread

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