Ravindra Jadeja and Yashasvi Jaiswal were the two heroes of India’s 434 runs win over England, but debutant Sarfaraz Khan was equally impressive with the bat. The 26-year-old, playing in his first Test, scored consecutive fifties. He played aggressively, scoring 62 off 66 in the first innings and 68 not out off 72 in the second as India completed their biggest win in four days.
Sarfaraz was made to wait as the management decided to promote Ravindra Jadeja. India were 33/3 and Jadeja was given a chance to score important runs without losing his wicket. Rohit and Jadeja added 204 runs for the fourth wicket. Khan came out to bat after Sharma’s dismissal and slammed fours and sixes. He was given a chance to bat at the No.4 slot in the second innings as India were looking for quick runs. Rohit explained the reason behind the call.
“Ravindra Jadeja has got so much experience and has scored a lot of runs as well. We wanted to keep the left-right combo. Sarfaraz is a quality batter and we wanted to give him time. He hit big shots but the decision to promote Jadeja was taken keeping in mind the flow of the game. We react to situations differently. We keep everything is mind before making any move,” Rohit Sharma said.
Rohit’s decision was questioned by Ravi Shastri, with the veteran saying that he would have asked Sarfaraz to bat before the all-rounder.
“I would have gone with Sarfaraz, who was making his debut. He is a good player of spin and can play his shots. It is important to expose a player to tough conditions and show confidence in him. If he passes the test, he will become a good player,” Ravi Shastri said.
Jadeja was named the Player of the Match for scoring a century in the first innings and taking 5 wickets in the second.
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