Two Jadejas too much for Andhra, Saurashtra in final

New Delhi, February 26

Ricky Bhui flicked the ball towards fine-leg and took off for a single. Ravindra Jadeja swooped on the ball in a flash, picked it up and unleashed a bullet throw at the non-striker’s end, catching Bhui just short of the crease. The superb run-out showed the grit and commitment of the Saurashtra all-rounder, who has been nursing a side strain for over a week now. Bhui’s run-out consolidated Saurashtra’s grip over the Vijay Hazare Trophy semifinal against Andhra Pradesh, which they eventually won by 59 runs.
This superlative effort wasn’t Jadeja’s only contribution in Saurashtra’s win; more significantly, he hammered a fine 56 that pulled his team out from a hazardous 69/4. Captain Cheteshwar Pujara had just been dismissed for 17, and the situation was looking quite grim for them. Jadeja, however, put on 113 runs for the fifth wicket with Arpit Vasavada (58) to resurrect the innings, and helped the team post a fighting 255.
“(Jadeja) is outstanding. I think he and Arpit got us back as it was 69/4 with so many overs (to go). They both have abilities,” said Saurashtra coach Shitanshu Kotak. The coach revealed how Jadeja had insisted to carry on batting against Jharkhand during the league match of the tournament in Secunderabad despite suffering an injury while attempting a run-out. In that must-win match, the half-fit Jadeja smashed an unbeaten 113 as Saurashtra chased down 330. “After that injury he batted and scored 113 and helped us chase down 330. Had it not been for that knock, we would have exited from the tournament in the league stage. You won’t believe when he was on 48, I sent him a message that he could come out after his fifty and go back in later if he felt comfortable. He, however, refused, and continued batting,” said Kotak.
The other Jadeja

The injury meant that he couldn’t bowl in the remaining matches. However, Saurashtra didn’t miss Jadeja the bowler as the other Jadeja, left-arm spinner Dharmendra, rose to the occasion and snared four wickets to pave Saurashtra’s way into the final.
Brief scores: Saurashtra 255 all out in 49.1 overs (A Vasavada 58, R Jadeja 56; K Raman 4/69); Andhra 196 all out in 45.3 overs (D Ravi Teja 42; D Jadeja 4/40)