3 best bowling performances in Ranchi ft. Ravindra Jadeja
The JSCA International Stadium Complex in Ranchi is all set to play host to the fourth Test between India and England. The venue has witnessed international fixtures across all formats, as well as a handful of Indian Premier League (IPL), clashes over the years.
The first-ever international match contested at the venue was an ODI fixture against England in 2013. As far as red-ball fixtures are concerned, the third Test of the 2016-17 Border-Gavaskar series became the first of its kind to be held at the venue, with only one more Test being played at the venue since.
The conditions have been suited for spinners owing to the black soil and the innate dryness in general. As a result, the bulk of the match-winning performances have come from spinners, although pacers also have been able to mark their presence with their reverse swing bowling.
On that note, let us take a look at the three best bowling performances in Ranchi.
#1 Ravindra Jadeja (5/124; India vs Australia 3rd Test, 2017)
Indian left-arm spinner, Ravindra Jadeja, is the leading wicket-taker in Ranchi when it comes to Tests. He has claimed 12 wickets in two appearances, with nine of them coming in the high-scoring draw against Australia in 2017.
In the first innings of the Test, Jadeja put in a mammoth shift, bowling 49.3 overs, and ending up with a memorable five-wicket haul. He accounted for the wickets of David Warner, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Wade, Pat Cummins, and Nathan Lyon to finish with figures of 5/124.
To complete his nine-wicket haul in Ranchi, Jadeja had figures of 4/54 at an economy of just 1.23. His marathon spell also included 18 maiden overs.
#2 Mohammed Shami (3/10; India vs South Africa 3rd Test, 2019)
Although Mohammed Shami is not in contention to play the upcoming Test against England due to injury, his sole red-ball outing in Ranchi was quite a memorable affair. He took five wickets in India's comprehensive win over South Africa by an innings and 202 runs in the third Test to complete a memorable whitewash.
In the final innings of the match, the right-arm pacer dismantled the South African middle-order with his potent bowling. He dismissed the trio of Zubayr Hamza, Faf du Plessis, and Temba Bavuma all in a single scathing spell to relinquish any hopes the visitors had for a potential comeback.
Shami only needed 10 overs to inflict the damage, as he finished with six maiden overs and conceded only 10 runs. The Proteas never recovered from that point on and were bundled out for a paltry 133 in just 48 overs.
#3 George Linde (4/133; India vs South Africa 3rd Test, 2019)
South Africa's away series against India in 2019 was largely a forgettable affair for Faf du Plessis and company as they were comprehensively beaten. A huge reason behind the loss, among several others, was the poor performance of the visiting spinners in general.
Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja picked up a combined tally of 28 wickets across the three matches, while South African spinners were nowhere close to that figure. George Linde's performance, although not match-winning by any means, was the sole positive from their brutal defeat in the series finale.
The left-arm spinner bagged four wickets in the only innings that South Africa had to bowl in Ranchi, where he dismissed Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja, Wriddhiman Saha, and Umesh Yadav. Linde was the sole South African bowler to pick up a four-fer in an innings throughout the entire Test series as he finished with 4/133 in 31 overs.
Will the spinners run riot in the upcoming fourth Test in Ranchi against England? Let us know what you think.