"All hail Sir Jadeja" - Twitterati praises Ravindra Jadeja for brilliant performance on Day 2
Indian all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja had a fantastic time out in the field on Day 2 of the third Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG). The 32-year-old was the pick of the Indian bowlers, bagging figures of 4-62, his fourth best in overseas conditions. His brilliant direct hit to run out Steve Smith was just the icing on the cake.
Australia resumed Day 2 in a dominant position at 166-2. Both Marnus Labuschagne and Smith continued to play the Indian bowlers using positive footwork. The duo were scoring runs at a brisk pace and a total in excess of 400 looked on the cards.
However, Ravindra Jadeja broke the century-stand between the two as he sent Labuschagne packing on 91. Jadeja extracted extra bounce from the surface which took the edge of Labuchagne's bat and Ajinkya Rahane grabbed a sharp catch at first slip.
Matthew Wade was the next man in and right from ball one, he showed intent to take on the Indian bowlers. But Ravindra Jadeja kept his cool and pitched the ball in the right areas. A false shot was induced and Jasprit Bumrah took a comfortable catch at mid-on.
Dismissing the tail early has been an issue for the Indian bowling since the past couple of years and Australia have also added crucial lower-order runs earlier in the series. But Ravindra Jadeja made sure that the Aussie tail didn't stick around for long.
Jadeja cleaned up Pat Cummins first and then pinned Nathan Lyon right in front, which forced Steve Smith to play his shots as only one wicket was remaining. After reaching his hundred, the 31-year-old began to play with more freedom and Team India seemed to be leaking runs again.
Just when everyone thought it was going to be the same old story of the visitors not being able to clean up the tail, Ravindra Jadeja, through his brilliant throw from the deep, got Steve Smith run out. From 206-2, Australia were restricted to 338 and a lot of credit for that goes to the all-rounder.
Twitter lauds Ravindra Jadeja for his efforts
On a pretty flat SCG pitch that had nothing in it either for the fast bowlers or the spinners, Ravindra Jadeja made an impact by being quicker through the air while bowling. He once again proved that he is a valuable addition to the Indian team through both his bowling and fielding.
Fans on Twitter were ecstatic with Ravindra Jadeja's performance and expressed their happiness. Here is what they had to say: