The upcoming series loss to South Africa won’t affect India’s next Test match in Sri Lanka in August of next year, according to battle-hardened all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, who emphasized that forcing a draw in the second Test would be equivalent to a “win” for the youthful team.
Due to the impossibility of chasing down a target of 549 on the last day, India is certain to lose the two-Test series against South Africa.
“I don’t think it will affect the next series. But, as a cricketer, nobody wants to lose the series, especially in India. So, hopefully, we will try our best cricket. We will try to put our best foot forward tomorrow,” Jadeja, who has a match-haul of seven wickets, told reporters at the end of the day’s play in Guwahati.
“Hopefully, we will try and save the Test match. So that, at least, I know even if we aren’t winning the series at least, we are able to draw the match, which is going to be a win-win situation for us.”
Although a series loss to South Africa is humiliating, Jadeja, who turns 37 in a few weeks, thinks it would be a useful teaching moment for the young players in the Indian team.
Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sai Sudharsan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Dhruv Jurel, and Washington Sundar are just a few of the Indians who are just beginning their Test careers.
“Look, the youngsters in the team, I think, they are in a learning phase. Their careers are starting. So, in international cricket, no matter what format you play, it’s not easy. No matter what format you play, it’s always a bit challenging.”
However, Jadeja noted that when a team loses at home, young players’ inexperience is emphasized far more than when they win, which is sometimes taken for granted.
“So, in India, when a situation like this happens, and you play 3-4 youngsters in the team, it feels like the whole team is young and inexperienced. And that gets highlighted. But, when India wins in home condition, people think that it’s not a big deal. But, if you lose a series in India, it becomes a very big deal. For a youngster, it’s a learning phase. If they handle this situation well, they will mature as players. And, India’s future will be better.”
It is undeniable that cricket is a conditions-based game, and when India batted first, they were unlucky.
“See, honestly, as a bowler, when we were bowling for the first two days, there were no marks on the wicket. The wicket was shining like a mirror.
“And, when they came to bowl, because of the wicket taken by the fast bowler, the spinners came into play more. And, their ball was turning and bouncing,” he explained.
According to Jadeja, Proteas’ batters played freely in the second innings without thinking about conditions after India conceded a 288-run lead in the first innings.
“So, as I said, the situation matters a lot in cricket. If it were the other way around, if we were 300 runs ahead and they came to bat, then it’s possible that we would have won by a large margin.” Jadeja agreed that losing the toss in both games did become a factor.
“Winning or losing the toss is part of the game. But, the effect is there on the game. When you are bowling for the first time, when nothing is happening on the wicket, then you will feel that the spinners are normal and ordinary.
“But, when you are 300 runs ahead and you are bowling, then you will see every bowler will seem big. So, it’s like that. But, hopefully, we won’t think too much about what happened and what didn’t.”
Jadeja urged the batters to concentrate only on the last day and forget about the previous four days.
“For us, tomorrow will be very important as a batting unit that we keep ourselves in a positive frame of mind and try to play the whole day.”
