Stats: Ravindra Jadeja becomes 10th Indian all-rounder to complete Test double

Jadeja‘s exploits have earned him a spot in the list of top Indian all-rounders

For any aspiring all-rounder, the benchmark to meet Test-standard is the double of 1000 runs and 100 wickets. Ravindra Jadeja has become the 10^th Indian cricketer to pass the all-rounders’ statistical litmus test. The 28-year old completed the feat during the fourth Test against Australia in Dharamsala.

Coming into the match needing 12 runs to secure the rare Test double, Jadeja got to the landmark with a towering six off Nathan Lyon towards the end of the second day’s play at the picturesque HPCA Stadium. With his exploits in both departments of the game, he has joined an illustrious group of all-rounders who have accomplished the Test double.

Prior to Jadeja, only 64 cricketers had reached the landmark. To put the numbers into perspective, those are from more than 140 years of Test cricket. Having begun his career in the shorter formats before gradually working his way through to Test level, the left-arm spinner’s achievements highlight his growing value to Indian cricket.

In chronological order, the nine other Indian all-rounders to complete the double are Vinoo Mankad, Kapil Dev, Ravi Shastri, Anil Kumble, Javagal Srinath, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Irfan Pathan and Ravichandran Ashwin.

A trail-blazer at a time when Indian cricket was in its developmental phase, Mankad almost single-handedly managed to deliver quite a few memorable victories with performances in both departments.

Upon starting his Test career as a number ten batsman, Shastri improved by leaps and bounds to even open the innings on several occasions. Primarily heralded for their bowling prowess, the likes of Kumble, Srinath, Harbhajan and Zaheer often provided handy contributions from the lower-order.

Despite not quite managing to live up to those lofty expectations towards the latter part of his career, Irfan‘s Test numbers could give a glimpse into his gifted potential with both bat and ball.

Going by the differences between the batting and bowling averages, the duo of Ashwin and Jadeja simply tower above the rest. However, the Tamil Nadu off-spinner and Kapil Dev are the only two Indian all-rounders to meet the universally accepted criteria for being tagged as truly world-class – a batting average above 30 and bowling average below 30.

Here is a table featuring the prominent Indian all-rounders of all time. 

*Indian all-rounders who have completed the Test double

Player	Career Span	Matches	Runs	Batting Average	Centuries	Wickets	Bowling Average	5-wicket Hauls	Average Difference
Vinoo Mankad	1946-59	44	2109	31.47	5	162	32.32	8	-0.84
Kapil Dev	1978-94	131	5248	31.05	8	434	29.64	23	1.40
Ravi Shastri	1981-92	80	3830	35.79	11	151	40.96	2	-5.16
Anil Kumble	1990-2008	132	2506	17.77	1	619	29.65	35	-11.87
Javagal Srinath	1991-2002	67	1009	14.21	0	236	30.49	10	-16.28
Harbhajan Singh	1998-2015	103	2224	18.22	2	417	32.46	25	-14.23
Zaheer Khan	2000-14	92	1231	11.95	0	311	32.94	11	-20.99
Irfan Pathan	2003-08	29	1105	31.57	1	100	32.26	7	-0.68
Ravichandran Ashwin	2011-present	49	1903	32.25	4	272	25.39	25	6.85
Ravindra Jadeja	2012-present	30	1004	27.88	0	139	23.45	8	4.43

(*Note: All Statistics are as of 26^th March 2017, at the end of the second day’s play in Dharamsala)