Ravindra Jadeja says he is thinking more as a batter after recent success

India’s veteran all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja said he is thinking more as a batter after he has been locked at number six in the batting order by the Gautam Gambhir-led management. Jadeja said earlier he was batting down the order and his mindset was different.

The left-hander scored a fine knock of 104 runs in the first innings of the opening Test match against the West Indies at Ahmedabad and thus played a key role in India’s innings and 140-run win.

Jadeja didn’t get a chance to bat in the second Test but delivered with the ball. The left-hander has been in tremendous form with the bat as he scored 516 runs in five Test matches against England.

Jadeja was awarded Player of the Series against the West Indies after he scored 104 runs and scalped eight wickets in a two-match series.

The all-rounder said in the post-match presentation, “As Gauti bhai (Gambhir) said, I’m at number six now. So I’m thinking more as a proper batsman, and that works for me. In the past, for many years, I’ve been batting at number eight, number nine, so my mindset was a little different from what I have now. I’m just trying to spend more time in the middle whenever I get a chance to bat.”

On the other hand, Jadeja is just 10 runs away from 4000 Test runs and 12 wickets short of 350 scalps. The Test no.1 all-rounder said the personal records take the back burner for him, and contributing to the team’s success is of utmost importance.

Jadeja added, “To be honest, I don’t think too much about records. I just focus on contributing with both bat and ball to help my team win. I always look forward to do that. I feel if I don’t perform with bat and ball, then it doesn’t reflect my value as a player. I’m always keen and give my 100 percent. I think this is my third Man of the Series trophy, so yeah, I’m very happy to bring it back home.”

Jadeja will next be seen in action in a two-match Test series against South Africa.