T20 World Cup 2021: "I think the first wicket was special" - Ravindra Jadeja on his MoM performance
Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammad Shami starred with the ball as India restricted Scotland to 85 runs all out in 17.4 overs. They then chased it down in 6.3 overs at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
Jadeja, who looked off-colour in the first couple of games, returned to his element against Kyle Coetzer's Scotland. The all-rounder, who returned with career-best figures of 3/15, picked Richie Berrington as his favourite of his three wickets.
Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, Ravindra Jadeja said:
"I was enjoying bowling on this track. Odd ball was spinning, odd ball was turning. I think the first wicket was special. Whenever you get the batter out on a turning ball, it is special."
Ravindra Jadeja drew Berrington forward with a perfect delivery before taking the ball a touch away to break his defense and unrattled the timber. It is a delight to watch when Jadeja beats the batters with such sharp turns, a common scene in red-ball cricket.
"Everyone knows that we need to win by a big margin" - Ravindra Jadeja
India needed to chase down the target within 7.1 overs to leapfrog Afghanistan's net run rate in the Group 2 table. KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma looked in sublime touch. They put up a 70 runs for the first wicket as the men in blue chased down the total within 6.3 overs.
Rahul brought the fastest half-century of the T20 World Cup in just 18 deliveries before Suryakumar Yadav finished the proceedings with a six.
Ravindra Jadeja asserted that they wanted to play the best cricket. He said:
"We were looking to play a good brand of cricket. Everyone knows that we need to win by a big margin and we were looking to play our best. Everyone is happy. If we play like this, nobody can beat us. In T20 format, we have to play like this."
India have now gone past Afghanistan to occupy third place in the Group 2 points table in terms of net run rate. Virat Kohli & Co play their last league game against Namibia on Monday. In order to qualify for the semis, India must beat Namibia comprehensively while hoping that Afghanistan defeats New Zealand.