‘Jadeja can't be effective in England': India must be willing to lose matches and change spin mindset, says Brad Haddin

Indian Express

4 hours ago

Former Australia wicket-keeper Brad Haddin questioned the role of Ravindra Jadeja as the lead spinner in India's Test line-up in England after his underwhelming performance in the first Test defeat at Headingley earlier this week.
With wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav sitting out, Jadeja played as the sole spin option and was marked to play a key holding role against the Englishmen. However, Jadeja failed to induce any pressure until late on day five when the ball occasionally spun from the footholes.
As England gunned down 350 of the 371-run target on the final day, the 36-year-old left-arm spinner conceded 104 runs in 24 overs at 4.33 for a solitary wicket. Haddin reckoned that the declining all-rounder was not India's most effective spin option in the conditions and said Jadeja could, at best, play a supporting role as the second spinner abroad.
'Are we seeing the decline of Ravindra Jadeja? I mean yes, he is effective in Indian conditions and how hard it is to play left-arm spin in India, but I don't think he is the best option to have in the team spin wise,' Haddin said on the Willow Talk podcast.
With veteran Ashwin retired and Jadeja's overseas performances on the wane, Haddin said India must be look at more attacking tweakers and be willing to sacrifice a few matches to unearth new heroes.
'I don't think Jadeja can be effective. Yes, he is good all-rounder and he could play as a second spinner – hold at the other end. But I think they need to be more attacking, be willing to lose a Test match with some inexperienced bowlers but change their mindset at the way they go about it,' Haddin added.
Haddin also suggested that India must rope in left arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav into the XI alongside Nitish Kumar Reddy to reduce the impact of benching Jadeja.
'I would look at Kuldeep. Someone who is an attacking spinner, who can get wickets. You've got a couple of hold-in bowlers. Siraj can play that role, but I think they need to be a bit more bold in their selection of bowlers,' he said.
'If Reddy plays, then you don't have to play Jadeja and bring the attacking spin option. I think that's one thing they've got to look at, especially away from home,' he added.
Former England batter Mark Butcher had lambasted Jadeja's bowling after the first Test. 'I could not believe how poorly Jadeja bowled, really,' said Mark Butcher on the Wisden Cricket Weekly Podcast. 'I'd likened it to owning a hammer but punching nails in with your fist instead – not landing the ball in the rough at all until, basically, it was too late. That was extraordinary, really.
'You talk about experience, and Jadeja has all the experience in the world. Somehow, it didn't seem to click to him or Rishabh Pant, the keeper, that it might be a good idea not to keep missing the rough all day to the left-handers,' he added after Jadeja's match figures read 47 overs, 172 runs and one wicket.