‘Did Not Make Any Sense to Me’: Sanjay Manjrekar Slams Rohit Sharma’s Strategy To Promote Ravindra Jadeja Ahead Of Shreyas Iyer

Team India succumbed to a crushing defeat on day 3 of the third Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. India’s humiliating batting collapse in the third innings played a major role in the outcome of the match. Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has lambasted skipper Rohit Sharma for his tactics on day 2 of the match. Manjrekar criticized Rohit’s questionable decision of sending all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja ahead of Shreyas Iyer.

While speaking on Star Sports at the end of play on day 2, Manjrekar suggested that Rohit’s gambit of sending Jadeja ahead of Iyer did not make sense.

Also Read: Australian Captain Steve Smith’s Unique Catching Drill in Delhi

“It has just disappointed me in the last and this innings as well that Jadeja came ahead of Shreyas Iyer. You cannot be doing that for left-right combination. You have got a proper batter, even if he is a right hander. Jadeja coming in as a left-hander, I can understand when you have 2-3 left-arm spinners like Bangladesh used to have in the past. Here you have two quality off-spinners bowling. It did not make any sense to me. Iyer has a great feel for spinners so you want him ahead in the line-up. And he has shown his class,” Manjrekar was quoted as saying on Star Sports.

With Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli in the line-up, Shreyas Iyer usually bats at the number five in the batting order. However, Ravindra Jadeja, who is in red-hot form, was sent ahead of Iyer in both innings. The ploy of promoting Jadeja to the batting order did not work as the southpaw flopped with the bat.

Furthermore, Indian batters looked completely hapless against Nathan Lyon as he registered a record eight-wicket haul in the match. Only Pujara managed to put up some fight and scored a gritty half-century.

Wrists, Whips, Prods: Cheteshwar Pujara And The Art of Playing Spin

On day 3 of the Indore Test match, Australia’s chase of 76 runs started on the worst possible note as Usman Khawaja was dismissed early. But Travis Head and Marnus Labuschagne steadied the ship and counterattacked India’s spinners. The visitors ultimately chased down their target with nine wickets to spare. Now, Australia will be looking to salvage the four-match Test series in the fourth game which will be played in Ahmedabad from March 9.

Get the latest Cricket News here