IPL 2021: Sanjay Manjrekar still has reservations on Ravindra Jadeja's batting abilities

Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has once again taken a dig at Ravindra Jadeja by calling him out for his batting potential. Although Manjrekar praised the all-rounder for his attacking form against medium pacers, he is unsure about the CSK player’s batting ability while facing quality fast bowlers.

In an interview with ESPNcricinfo, Manjrekar told, "I am still not convinced about Jadeja's batting, especially the role CSK has given him. If he gets the same role in every match, will he be able to continue with his performances against the quality pace bowlers or not? Because so far, he has pounced on bowlers like Prasidh Krishna and Harshal Patel. It remains to be seen whether he will be as attacking as well against the quick pacers who try to attack him."

Jadeja has been in an outstanding form in this IPL. Coming out to bat in the lower-order, the Chennai Super Kings all-rounder has scored 179 runs in eight innings with an impressive strike rate of 147. Recently, Jadeja smashed KKR's fast bowler Prasidh Krishna for 20 runs in the 19th over of the match as CSK won a thrilling match in the last ball of the match. By scoring a total of 22 runs from just eight balls, and taking one wicket with an economy of 5.25, Jadeja was adjudged Player of the Match for his all-round performance.

In the first leg of the IPL 2021, Jadeja mercilessly belted current purple cap holder Harshal Patel for 37 runs in the 20th over of the match against RCB. The left-hander hit five long sixes and a four as he equalled the record for the most number of runs in an over, which was set by Chris Gayle. But according to the cricketer-turned-commentator, both Prasidh Krishna and Harshal Patel are not the kind of quality bowlers that possess the ability to attack the batters. In addition to the special performances, Jadeja also averages the most among the Chennai batters. With an average of 59.7 from 8 innings, he leads the chart followed by Faf du Plessis, who is way behind him averaging 49.3.

Sanjay Manjrekar on Jadeja’s bowling

However, after pointing out on Jadeja’s batting abilities, Sanjay Manjrekar praised the all-rounder for his bowling skills. Speaking to ESPNcricinfo, Manjrekar told about the fact that when Ravindra Jadeja bowls his full four overs in the IPL, MS Dhoni gets a sigh of relief and the spinner becomes a valuable asset for CSK.

With an economy of 6.8, Jadeja has seven wickets in ten innings to his name, becoming the second-best left-arm spinner,  in IPL 2021 behind Axar Patel. "The crucial thing Jadeja has done in his last two matches is he's completed his full quota of overs. CSK skipper MS Dhoni breathes a sigh of relief when Jadeja bowls his four overs in the match. If Jadeja continues to bowl his full quota of overs, he becomes a valuable asset for his side," Manjrekar was heard saying.

Image: BCCI/IPLT20.com