 | « Back to article | Print this article |
No major problem with our batting and bowling: Jadeja
India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja is optimistic about India’s chances in the fifth and final One-dayer against New Zealand in Wellington on Friday.
He said his teammates need to avoid panicking and curb the "little errors" that have cost the team the series after conceding an unassailable 3-0 lead.
"It is just that we panic a bit; we have to reduce that percentage, those little errors. I don't think there is any major problem as to why we are not clicking in batting and bowling," said Jadeja, defending his team-mates ahead of the last match of the ODI series.
"We just need to avoid panicking and we can get positive results," he added.
Need to avoid embarrassment
Jadeja said the team is desperate to win the match and turn around a dismal tour thus far.
The Men in Blue lost the ODIs in Napier and Hamilton (twice), and tied the one in Auckland. They must win Friday's match to avoid the embarrassment of a 4-0 defeat.
"We want to win. We will have to win to keep a good morale for the Test series [which follows]," Jadeja said.
"We have to be positive and give 100 per cent, for there is nothing left to think now. We know our capability and have already done it in the past, in overseas conditions as well.
"I don't think there is a big difference in what the two sides are doing at the moment. It is about small things.
"In One-day cricket, two-three overs can make a difference. That is a problem for us; we have to avoid mistakes in such times," he added.
Individual success for Jadeja
After taking time to adjust early on in the series, Jadeja came into his own in the last two matches. He put up a brave partnership with Ravichandran Ashwin at Eden Park and then played a stellar role in the third ODI, which ended in a tie.
At Hamilton, in the fourth ODI, he scored his second consecutive fifty to propel the side to a fighting total after the top-order collapsed.
"There is no secret, I was just backing myself," Jadeja replied, when asked about the secret of his recent success.
"In the first two games the runs and wickets did not come. I was thinking that good times aren't around always. You have to face tough periods as well, and hope that they get over as soon as possible. I wanted to minimise my mistakes and work hard to get through this phase. This is how I was motivating myself," he said.
"As for batting, I was just hoping that I get some time in the middle, play three-four overs and then go for my shots.
"That is what happened. I did not think too much, did not experiment too much, just played my game. Whenever I do that, it works for me," he added.
'In the last game, it was an India-like wicket'
Jadeja's bowling prowess too came to the fore in the fourth ODI as he tied down the in-form pairing of Ross Taylor and Kane Williamson. Along with Ashwin, he put the batsmen under pressure, which was only relieved when his spell ended.
"In the last game we needed a wicket as they had a good partnership going. I was getting turn and was hoping to get one or two breakthroughs for the team, and we could come back. Unfortunately, I did not get a wicket when we needed one," Jadeja opined.
"You get turn on Indian wickets and that plays on the mind of the batsman, who does not blindly step out and play his shots.
"In the last game, it was an India-like wicket. It was soft, the ball was turning. It became a different ball game.
"They were not stepping out against me. (Kane) Williamson's game is to step out all the time, but he did not do that in the last match. That is the difference between when it turns and when it does not. I stick to my strength and do not try anything new," he added.
As a whole, the Indian bowling has come under criticism from captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who blamed the fast bowlers for the loss in the fourth ODI.
As such, the blame for the series loss lays at their doorstep as well, despite the fact that majority of the batsmen too failed to come up with the goods.
"It depends on the situation. In cricket, only if you get some help from the wicket does the bowler think (about getting wickets) and putting the opposition under pressure. If there is nothing happening on the wicket, the bowler always thinks that he should not go for a boundary."
'If the team is a poor position, I think how I can improve it'
From a personal point of view though, Jadeja has taken massive strides in international cricket in the last one year, from becoming a permanent member of the Test side when playing at home, to playing his first overseas Test at Durban, ahead of Ashwin, and now playing a handsome hand at the No 7 slot in the ODI team.
"I don't think that if I do this or that, the team will win or lose, and so on. I just think what I can do from a given situation. If the team is a poor position, I think how I can improve it.
"Everyone wants to do well, but, at times, it does not click for a period of four-five games. Everyone is working hard. We have won tournaments and series before the tour to South Africa (where the down-turn started)."