India vs Australia: With competition from other spinners, it's all about staying relevant for Ravindra Jadeja ahead of World Cup

Through the early half of the recent English summer, Kuldeep Yadav was the name on everyone’s lips. Until Joe Root scored a bat-dropping century in the final ODI at Leeds, it was almost an opinion in unison that he would be Virat Kohli’s lone spinner in their Test attack. That didn’t materialise. Amidst a whirlwind craze for chopping and changing, R Ashwin was the one constant through the Test series in England (and in South Africa) when conditions warranted. Of course, he did miss the final Test at the Oval, where Ravindra Jadeja made his presence felt and started a comeback in limited-overs’ formats. [caption id=“attachment_5652731” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Ravindra Jadeja. Reuters[/caption] Quintessentially, it is where Jadeja is at the moment in his career. Trying to prove his worth all over again, whenever playing time is afforded to him on the world stage. The move to leg-spin in ODIs and T20Is has been tough on him - between Ashwin and him, he had always been the more agile fielder and an attacking batsman. Just a singular poor showing in the 2017 Champions Trophy, and he found himself standing on the wrong side of a revolving door selection policy. When playing at home, he still found a role to play in Tests. But Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Windies have been India’s most recent visitors - hardly a worthy challenge. Now, the onus through these last two years has been on either the 2018 overseas cycle or the 2019 ODI World Cup. Jadeja has been spotted witnessing against the tide as both are concerned. “For me the biggest thing is that I am playing for India and maybe some day if I do well, I will be back playing all three formats of the game soon enough. But my aim is to convert any opportunity I get into performance. When you are playing just one format it is very tough because there is too much gap between matches and the experience (rhythm) you need to play at international level is less. So you have to keep motivating yourself - whenever I get a chance, like in this game, whatever ability I have, I have to give my best on the field,” he said at the Oval , after scoring 86 not out as India pushed for a 3-2 scoreline. Cut out the ambient noise and his words take double meaning. First, perhaps unlike Ashwin, Jadeja still harbours an ambition to play all three formats for India. And second, albeit more importantly, the break between international opportunities is hampering this bid to make a comeback, pertinently to the ODI squad. Consider this. Immediately after his showing in the Oval Test, he was included in the Asia Cup, on account of more spin-friendly tracks in the UAE. He was impressive there, albeit used as only the second or third choice spinner. Even so, he painted a picture in front of the selectors that he is still in running for a third spinner’s slot in the World Cup squad as and when the time comes. Rest against Windies didn’t help though, and now Krunal Pandya has made the team management very aware of what he brings to the table. When seen in direct competition to each other, the elder Pandya is a poor man’s Ravindra Jadeja. And this is where the advantage still lies with the Saurashtra man, only if he is minutely ahead. It brings us to the Australia series - this is where it counts, for the Team India will be on the road regularly from here onwards as they build towards that mega tournament in England. At this juncture, Jadeja will find himself pulled in two directions. One, he cannot afford to sit on the bench, keeping in mind future tours and travels in limited-overs’ cricket. But it is the second pointer that proves greater concern on harder and flatter Australian wickets. Here, turn is of vital importance. Yadav will get good purchase, and Ashwin will only lag behind Nathan Lyon in the number of revolutions he puts on the ball. Both of them though will find themselves above Jadeja in the pecking order when Kohli sits down to pick the playing eleven for the first Test in Adelaide. The left-arm spinner only has a natural variation along with a stock straight ball. The other thing of contention is that Ashwin had a career-defining series when he last played in Australia in 2014-15. Jadeja was out injured then, and returned only for the World Cup. As such, we do not know how useful (or not) he might have been in flatter Australian conditions, wherein variation in trajectory from spinners is more vital than a consistent line. It is the singular unknown variable that might tilt the balance against him. As things stand then, Jadeja’s only chance of being named in the Indian playing eleven for Adelaide is if Ashwin takes Hardik Pandya’s vacant all-rounder spot, and the spinner’s toss-up is between him and Yadav. Even then, it seems a losing battle. Just how does Jadeja prove his worth sitting on the bench, then?