Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2023: Ravi Shastri reveals chat that transformed Ravindra Jadeja

Ravi Shastri and Ravindra Jadeja. (Photo Source: Twitter)

Former India Head Coach Ravi Shastri has opened up about a very interesting conversation he once had with current India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, which he credits to have completely brought about a positive transformation upon him.

Ravindra Jadeja has been in the form of his life in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2023. India are already leading the four-match Test series against Australia by 2-0. In both the Tests, Jadeja played a crucial role to engineer India’s victory, for which he was conferred upon with the Man of the Match award in both the matches. In the second Test, he showed his all-round skills to perfection, scoring a half-century and bagging ten wickets to completely dismantle Australia.

While this coming-of-age transformation for Jadeja has been a cause of celebration for Indian cricket, former coach of the men’s team and ace commentator Ravi Shastri has now revealed a conversation from 2019 that he once had with the allrounder which, he thinks, played a positive role in his transformation.

Recalling the same, Shastri revealed that after Jadeja was dropped from the Lord’s Test in 2019, he and his bowling deputy Bharat Arun sat together with Jadeja to re-inforce his confidence and give him their valuable feedback. He remembered telling Jadeja to hone his batting skills a bit, in order to come up as one of India’s go-to allrounders.

“I think he is hungry, he is supremely fit. He is very passionate about the sport. I remember not too many conversations, but it was at Lord’s in the 2019 tour. He didn’t play that game. It was a conversation that happened. We had a chat, Bharat Arun was there, the bowling coach as well. We said, you have got everything in you, just focus on that batting of yours.

Work a little harder in that area in the nets because you have got the game, you have the talent and it’s weird telling you that you have got that talent. It is for you to realise that you have got that talent. You believe that you have got the talent”, the 60-year-old said while speaking in an episode of the ICC Review.

‘Once he got the opportunity later, he has not looked back’- Shastri pleased with the outcome

The former all-rounder stated that all Bharat Arun and he had to do was just instigate Ravindra Jadeja to realise the immense potential that he bears within himself. He was of the opinion that the 34-year-old would definitely bounce back after retrospecting over his missed chances in certain tours.

Shastri also mentioned that he was extremely pleased to see Jadeja acknowledging that conversation and working upon himself hard, which ultimately saw him rise as one of the best allrounders in world cricket. He added that this led to him being looked at by coaches and team management as a match winning allround option and since then, he has lived up to every expectation, never having to look back.

“Once he got the opportunity later, he has not looked back, having got runs in crucial stages, in trying conditions and then of course, with the ball, he does his job. That’s why in overseas conditions it becomes a nightmare for a coach to pick a spinner. If you have to pick only one, then it is a nightmare. Look at Ashwin’s record and then you have Jadeja, it becomes tough,” said Shastri.

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