When did Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja last play together in an overseas Test match?
India's spin wizards Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja featured in the opening day of the Boxing Day Test match at Melbourne. Interestingly, this is only the 3rd instance that the duo has featured in a Test match together outside the subcontinent.
The last occasion was four years ago, when Virat Kohli's side toured the West Indies. Ashwin and Jadeja featured together in the 3rd Test of the 4-match series at the Darren Sammy Stadium, St. Lucia.
Ravichandran Ashwin was the Man of the Match in that game. He scored a brilliant century in the first innings and also took three wickets in the pace-friendly conditions. To his credit, Ravindra Jadeja too scalped three wickets, but the southpaw didn't have much impact with the bat.
The second occasion was all the way back in 2014, under MS Dhoni. It will be safe to say the team got it wrong that time. In swing-favoring conditions in Manchester, India picked Ashwin, Jadeja and three pacers.
The visitors were trounced by an innings and 59 runs and the spin-duo could only manage two wickets in the game. England pacers had a fruitful stint and picked 16 of the 20 Indian wickets.
Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja's records in Australia
The conditions were favorable for the spin duo to play together in 2018 as well. However, Ashwin suffered a back injury early in the series and Jadeja only played as his replacement. Although the duo hasn't bowled together in Australia before, they have healthy individual records Down Under.
In eight games in Australia, Ravichandran Ashwin has picked 32 wickets at an average of 42.78. Ravindra Jadeja has only played two matches in Australia, but he has 7 wickets to his name.
India are currently 0-1 down in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2020. The Boxing Day Test in Melbourne will be followed by the 3rd Test in Sydney, beginning on January 3.