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He once again came so close to sealing his place in popular legend, but it was not meant to be

Sidharth Monga14-Jul-2025

Mohammed Siraj, Ravindra Jadeja and Ben Stokes added so much to this Test match•Getty Images

Ravindra Jadeja is a cricketer’s cricketer. Barring certain freakish geniuses, he is the first name many want on their team sheet. He is a solid, dependable player who contributes in many different ways.Everything he does – barring wielding his bat like a sword which can break weaker wrists – looks effortless and repeatable. As a bowler, he can hit the good length straight out of the bed, and can keep hitting it until he draws water out of the ground. He is a sensational fielder in the outfield.As a batter, Jadeja doesn’t need to premeditate or make trigger movements. A lot of it is just physical gifts that he has honed and trained. He hardly ever looks hurried. His batting is pure. He just reacts to what is bowled, as coaches teach you at grass roots levels. If it is short, go back. If it is full, go forward. If it is wide, leave it alone. Score off bad balls, keep good balls out.Related

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For years now, Jadeja has been the premier allrounder in the most demanding format of the game. He is also perhaps the closest to being an allrounder in the classic sense of the word. He can be genuinely picked as a specialist top-six batter in almost all conditions. He can be selected as a bowler alone in most conditions, barring ones that make it impossible for spinners to bowl in.Since Jadeja’s debut, only five men have bowled more deliveries in Test cricket. His batting took time to come along, but he is averaging 42.01 since 2018, the year in which he scored his first century. That is in the top 20 among those who have scored at least 2000 runs in this period.Yet, to the casual observer, Jadeja hasn’t delivered that one memorable performance to remember him by. It is the curse of being so good. When you win, you win big. His countless five-fors and runs at home are completely taken for granted in popular memory largely because they are not done in the epic matches that – no offence to him – Ben Stokes does, for example. Or Andrew Flintoff before him.This Test at Lord’s – a venue where Jadeja scored 68 priceless but chancy runs 11 years ago and clinched the match-winning run-out – was an opportunity for him to finally give storytellers a story to back his numbers with. He is just what this young, inexperienced unit needs. Just someone old-school to drive home the advantage they are capable of getting.Ravindra Jadeja notched up a fourth straight half-century•Getty ImagesThis was Jadeja’s fourth straight half-century. At a time when it was not easy to think straight, he calmed India down with his solid batting. When he went in, India had almost lost the match. Yet again, a Test they had been the better team for longer periods in. When Jadeja went to lunch, he had lost Nitish Kumar Reddy, the last recognised batter he had. India still needed 81 runs for the win. He scored 61 of the 99 runs that came while he was at the wicket. He faced over 30 overs out of the 55 bowled in that time.Jadeja is so old-school and so naturally gifted that he has not had to constantly upgrade himself. Sometimes it frustrates those who watch him. He still defends spin with his bat beside the pad, something that has been erased from the game with DRS taking over. Still, his basics are so good that he is one of the best Test players going around.It is this strength that can become a slight weakness at times. Let’s firstly get it clear that Lord’s doesn’t really have pockets to hit twos into. The square is lush, and it is not easy to use the bowler’s pace to run the ball behind square. The balls are soft; even Rishabh Pant doesn’t charge against the old ones because there is no guarantee they will travel.So once England set defensive fields for Jadeja, he was handcuffed. He doesn’t play the reverse sweeps and the ramps and the kind. With traditional shots, it was difficult to find gaps in the spread-out field for twos to transfer the pressure back on England. It was almost a situation of taking it one run an over, provided the Nos. 10 and 11 hold their end up for one or two balls every over.Ravindra Jadeja held his own after India lost three wickets early•Getty ImagesJadeja, though, was prepared to do it in singles. He clearly calculated these were not conditions where he could take the risk. He had the discipline and the physical strength to keep turning up over after over, and back himself to be the last man standing. He kept the sword celebration aside when he reached fifty.What started as just a “let’s see how far we can get” ended up as a heartbreakingly close defeat. Jadeja came this close to sealing his place in popular legend. A story mothers would tell their babies on their laps. It was not to be. His strengths brought him close. They perhaps kept him from attaining the ultimate win. People will argue whether he should have taken risks. There is no straight answer.Jadeja didn’t show much emotion when the ball wickedly bounced onto the leg stump off a seemingly solid defensive shot from Mohammed Siraj, who was on his haunches and almost injured himself punching his bat. As if asking it, “What did I do to deserve this?”A lot in life is about turning up. About being there. With equanimity. Jadeja has faced a lot of heartbreak in his life, including the World Cup semi-final six years ago in this country when he again nearly won India a lost match. Jadeja knows more than most about the value of turning up. His team has been the better team over way more time than their opposition in the series. Yet, they find themselves behind 2-1. If India need any inspiration to turn up and repeat doing the good stuff in Manchester, all they need to do is look at Jadeja.

Manchester United have reportedly learned the current price tag for a long-term midfield target who has been billed as a replacement for Casemiro. Ruben Amorim wants to invest in a new central midfielder after identifying the position as a weak spot in his lineup. United have prepared a six-man shortlist for the January transfer window.

'Problem part of the pitch'

United spent heavily in the last transfer window following a nightmare 2024-25 campaign, which saw them go trophyless and finish 15th in the Premier League. Amorim wanted to bolster his attack after the likes of Joshua Zirkzee, Marcus Rashford and Rasmus Hojlund failed miserably last year.

Accordingly, they signed star attackers such as Benjamin Sesko from RB Leipzig, Matheus Cunha from Wolves, and Bryan Mbeumo from Brentford. They also bolstered the goalkeeping position by replacing Andre Onana with Senne Lammens from Royal Antwerp.

One more position Amorim wanted to strengthen was the midfield, and he even eyed a move for Brighton's Carlos Baleba, but his £115 million ($153m) price tag proved too steep. So far in the new season, Amorim has used captain Bruno Fernandes in a holding role alongside Casemiro, with Cunha, Mbeumo or Mason Mount filling the two No.10 slots behind lone striker Sesko. But the Portuguese coach is still eager to sign a midfield specialist to protect the defence.

Advertisement(C)Getty ImagesMan Utd learn price tag of long-term target

While the Red Devils remain interested in Baleba and Nottingham Forest's Elliot Anderson, they also have their eyes on long-term midfield target Joao Gomes, who currently plays for Wolves. The Premier League giants first identified Gomes as Casemiro's long-term replacement n 2024 when he was valued at £40 million ($51m). However, talks never progressed and then-manager Erik ten Hag later signed Manuel Ugarte instead.

According to , Gomes is willing to make a move in the January transfer window amid Wolves' on-field struggles and could be snapped up for around £44m ($58m/€50m). The Red Devils consider Gomes as a cheaper alternative to Anderson or Baleba and could place a formal bid once the window reopens. 

United told to sign Baleba despite massive price tag

Earlier this month, former United striker Louis Saha urged the club to sign Baleba as he believes that the young Seagulls star could add similar value to the Red Devils that Rodri brings to the Manchester City squad.

Speaking to , Saha said: "Fabinho was very powerful for Liverpool and Rodri happened to be the same for Man City. When you have this very strong midfielder that provides in the transition, the power and the stability at the same time, that's a top player and there are not so many who are able to actually dictate midfield as much. We’ve heard that there were talks with Brighton for Carlos Baleba, who was very close to joining and I really like his style. Everyone can see that there is a gap and a need for power and the ability to change the tempo of the game. Sometimes United play to stay secure and slow the pace and that is not helpful for United’s strikers so we need something better."

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Getty Images SportWho are the other midfielders on Man Utd's shortlist?

United recruiters have also been tracking additional midfielders for January. Former Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher is seen as a potential short-term option if he becomes available for loan in January. The Atletico Madrid midfielder is pushing to secure a place in England’s World Cup squad, and regular game time in the Premier League could be key. 

Crystal Palace’s Adam Wharton has also been monitored, though he recently signed a fresh contract at Selhurst Park. Another name being discussed is Stuttgart’s Angelo Stiller, who is a deep-lying playmaker with a strong Bundesliga pedigree. United did not bid for him in the summer, but Stiller is reportedly open to a Premier League switch. His £35m ($46m) release clause makes him an affordable option.

Sussex edge closer to Division One safety while visitors must avoid defeat in final round

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay18-Sep-2025Yorkshire 194 (Lyth 47, Hudson-Prentice 3-33, Unadkat 3-36) and 109 for 3 (Bairstow 64*) drew with Sussex 250 (Simpson 66, Hill 4-43, Milnes 3-80)Skipper Jonny Bairstow and James Wharton led Yorkshire to safety as their rain-ruined Championship match with Sussex ended in a draw.Sussex sensed an unlikely triumph when left-arm spinner James Coles picked up three wickets in nine balls after taking the new ball as Yorkshire lurched to 6 for 3. But in their contrasting styles Bairstow and Wharton averted the crisis, adding 103 in 34 overs. When bad light stopped play at 4pm Bairstow was unbeaten on 64 and Wharton 23 and with no improvement in conditions the players shook hands 20 minutes later.Sussex take 12 points and Yorkshire 11. Sussex will go into their final game against Worcestershire needing five points to guarantee their first division status but Yorkshire, who are at home to Durham – one of the teams below them – will have to avoid defeat to make sure they stay up.With 199 overs across the four days lost to rain and bad light – the equivalent to more than two days’ play – there was virtually no prospect of a positive result, even more so when morning drizzle delayed the restart until 1pm.But Sussex picked up a batting point when Ollie Robinson hit two boundaries off offspinner Dom Bess before the hosts, 232 for 8 overnight, were dismissed for 250. The impressive George Hill finished with 4 for 43 from 19.2 overs after taking the final two wickets. Sean Hunt edged a beauty which pitched and left him to wicketkeeper Bairstow, and last man Jaydev Unadkat was taken high to his right at second slip by Bess.Skipper John Simpson threw the new ball to Coles with immediate results. Adam Lyth chipped his third ball to midwicket and Mayank Agarwal was drawn forward by the sixth which turned enough to take the edge. In his next over, Coles had Fin Bean well held by the diving Oli Carter at short leg, as the ball ballooned up off a combination of pad and bat handle.It was hard work at first for Wharton and Bairstow. Wharton, in particular, found left-armer Unadkat a handful bowling wide from the crease and moving the ball both ways. But he survived and there was respite when Simpson was forced to employ his other slow bowler Jack Carson with Coles as the light deteriorated. Bairstow played with increasing confidence and scoring on both sides of the wicket as he passed 50 for the seventh time this season, an innings which contained 11 fours.Bairstow needed treatment to his left leg before the players came off for the last time but he had done an important job for his side.

Allrounders Deepti Sharma and Amelia Kerr have also been released by their respective franchises

Nagraj Gollapudi05-Nov-2025

India’s World Cup winners Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues and Shafali Verma are some of the high-profile players retained by the WPL franchises ahead of the 2026 mega auction.Australia’s Alyssa Healy and Meg Lanning, along with New Zealand allrounder Amelia Kerr, are set to enter the auction pool after being released by their respective teams. Among other big releases is Deepti Sharma, the Player of the Tournament in the World Cup. Deepti led Warriorz in Healy’s absence in 2025ESPNcricinfo has learned two teams – defending champions Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals – have retained five players, the maximum allowed by WPL; Royals Challengers Bengaluru have retained four players, Gujarat Giants have retained two and UP Warriorz have retained one. While the individual amounts for players could not be confirmed, the following are likely retentions:Delhi Capitals: Annabel Sutherland, Marizanne Kapp, Jemimah Rodrigues, Shafali Verma, Niki Prasad
Mumbai Indians: Harmanpreet Kaur, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Amanjot Kaur, G Kamalini and Hayley Matthews
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Smriti Mandhana, Ellyse Perry, Richa Ghosh, Shreyanka Patil
Gujarat Giants: Ashleigh Gardner, Beth Mooney
UP Warriorz: Shweta Sehrawat.Related

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As per WPL retention rules, franchises can retain a maximum of three capped Indian players, a maximum of two overseas players, and a maximum of two uncapped Indian players. In a case where the franchise wanted to retain five players, the rules state that at least one should be an uncapped Indian player. The WPL has also, for the first time, decided to allow franchises the use of right-to-match (RTM) option at the auction to buy back a player who was part of their squad in 2025.Franchises have been allotted INR 15 crore each for the auction, which is understood to take place in Delhi on November 27. While announcing the retention rules, the WPL also listed the guideline prices for the retention slabs: INR 3.5 crore (Player 1), INR 2.5 crore (Player 2), INR 1.75 crore (Player 3), INR 1 crore (Player 4) and INR 50 lakh (Player 5). If a franchise opts to retain five players, INR 9.25 crore would be deducted from its 15 crore purse, while for four, the deduction would be INR 8.75 crore; for three, it would be INR 7.75 crore; for two INR 6 crore; and for one INR 3.5 crore.Therefore DC and MI will have INR 5.75 crore to build their squad, which should have between 16 and 18 players. They will not have any RTMs available.Warriorz, who have retained an uncapped player in Shweta Sehrawat, will have the maximum purse of INR 14.5 crore along with four RTMs. Giants will have three RTMs restricted to only Indian players and a purse of INR 9 crore while RCB will have one RTM and INR 6.25 crore.

Former West Indies captain Brian Lara highlighted lack of funds and technology as factors in the team’s recent decline, but also called upon the players to show more passion in order to compete better.After West Indies’ defeat to India in the first Test in Ahmedabad, Test captain Roston Chase highlighted “infrastructure problems” and the continuous “struggle for finances” in the Caribbean. This was touched upon by the cricket strategy and officiating committee of Cricket West Indies, of which Lara and Chase are both a part.”If you want to get things done, you have to have the capital to do it. So that is a major part,” Lara said on the sidelines of the CEAT Cricket Rating Awards in Mumbai on Tuesday. “But at the same time, I would like to ask Roston Chase and the other guys to… do they have the cricket at heart? Do they really want to play for West Indies? And that is the most important thing because you would find a way.Related

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“I mean we did not have better facilities 30-40 years ago. Viv Richards didn’t bat on any better practice pitches or anything. We had to do the same thing, the same grind; but the passion was different. The passion to play for West Indies was different. So I urge the young players to realise that this is a wonderful opportunity. And I am almost sure that every single one of their parents would have had in the back of their mind, their son playing for the West Indies, their son doing well for the West Indies because it meant a lot back in those days.”So I agree with [Chase on West Indies’ struggles for finances], but I still believe there is an onus on each young player to create that love and desire to play for West Indies.”Saying that, Lara also acknowledged that the players should not be blamed for seeking lucrative deals in franchise cricket, and that CWI needed to find a way to make it financially attractive for them to represent the region.”I can’t blame any single player for wanting to pursue cricket as a career outside of the West Indies – because the disparity in what’s happening, playing five or six franchise leagues, compared to playing for the West Indies, is different [in monetary terms],” Lara said. “And you have to have empathy with that player. But you also have to feel that what can we do at home to make sure that that player, or future players, understand that playing for the West Indies is also very important.5:02

Chopra: Gulf between India, West Indies there for everyone to see

“The IPL has carved out a period of time where it’s exclusive to the IPL. But there’s six or seven different leagues that’s popping up around the world, and everybody’s wanting to do it. So I think the onus is on Cricket West Indies to find a way to create, unify the efforts of the young players who want to go out, but also have them playing for us.”And a series against India, we want to play good cricket against the best team in the world. So you want your best players out there. You don’t want your best players in America or somewhere else around the world.”Lara used an example of football legend Lionel Messi, who has spent his entire club career outside of his home country, but has been an integral part of Argentina’s national team.”I mean if you look at Argentina, Messi grew up in Europe, but he plays for Argentina. But he played for Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, and he was allowed [to play],” Lara said. “And there’s a lot more South American footballers that do that, and eventually go back and play for their country, and have the pride to do so.”Australia is able to do it. England is able to do it, to keep their players loyal to their country. So we have to find a way to do that and there’s no pointing any fingers at anybody. It’s just that we’ve got to come together as a team, as administrators, as coaches, as players. And really and truly if you have West Indies cricket at heart, you will find a way to move forward.””I am hoping I would like to see a stronger first-class performance before you get into the international scene” – Brian Lara•Associated Press

Batting has been one department where West Indies have struggled. The squad touring India don’t have a single batter who averages 30 in Tests. They have had promising talents like Alick Athanaze, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Kavem Hodge and Mikyle Louis break into the team, but none of them has been able to establish themselves as a regular.”I believe that if a player is being picked on potential only and he does not have the stats to go with it, it is very difficult for him now to get to this higher level, and [to] expect so much from him,” Lara said. “I believe that because of that situation, you would find players that are maturing later on. So it is either you stick with them – age 22, 23, 24, 25 hopefully reap the benefit when they get into their late 20s – or you look at players that are seasoned, Jason Holder and the guys who may have matured.”And if you remember, Graham Gooch scored the majority of his runs in his 30s. A guy like Adam Gilchrist, Mike Hussey, all these guys started playing late, and they came out to be some of the best in the world. So you are going to find, once in a lifetime, the Tendulkars. Age 16, 17, Afridi, the Garfield Sobers who were in their teenage, they were able to cope with it immediately. Everybody is not going to be blessed with that sort of talent.”So I am hoping that I would like to see a stronger first-class performance before you get into the international scene. Back in my day, you had to break records. You sat and watched cricket for two years, 20 Test matches, carry the towel, carry the water before you finally got in. And during that period of time, you grew, you matured. And some mature faster than others.”

Aqib and Masood have made it clear that the spin strategy is not short-term, but is it really a fix?

Danyal Rasool27-Jan-2025There has been lots of glorious myth-making of Pakistani fast-bowling. Of Sarfraz Nawaz, wily inventor of a new art no one new anything about. Of Imran Khan running in open chested, grace and effectiveness in equal measure, all culminating in a gazelle like gallop, creating the cricketer that led Pakistan’s greatest ever side. Of Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, whose swing and accuracy were as addictively watchable as they were devastating, of Shoaib Akhtar, a high-speed train in a world of freight locomotives. The legends are passed on from one generation to another, and, for much of the region’s cricketing history, marked Pakistan out as the exception to the rule that the sub-continent was a land of spin-bowling specialists.The stories we tell of Sajid Khan and Noman Ali will be different, and nowhere near as enduring. After years of repeated failures to develop a home template in line with the self-image Pakistan wish to live up to, the current setup – led in part by Aqib Javed, member of Pakistan’s selection panel and all-format interim coach – dispensed with the idealism and injected realpolitik into their philosophy. The fast bowlers weren’t taking 20 wickets, and all attempts to prepare seam-friendly wickets had failed, as, seemingly, had the ability and willingness of many of their fast bowlers to actually play Test matches.Related

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Their new idea was as brilliant as it was simple, hiding in plain sight. Pakistan had wizened old fingerspinners who always seemed to do well in spin-conducive conditions in domestic cricket. So, by way of fans and heaters, windbreakers and greenhouses, they prepared surfaces that ragged from day one, where fast bowlers were rendered as superfluous as horse-drawn carriages; seamers have bowled 17 overs for Pakistan in their last four Tests, and taken one wicket. Bat first, get the ball ragging, rinse, repeat.Pakistan finished the World Test Championship cycle at the bottom•AFP/Getty ImagesAnd supporters, despite disgruntlement from some quarters, were happy to sacrifice playing style at the altar of effectiveness. Drawbacks, such as what it meant for Pakistan’s fast bowling future, or the toll it would take on batters’ confidence and techniques could be ignored. Their captain Shan Masood went far enough to call it a “sacrifice” that the batters and fast bowlers were making. However, they had to win. That was the social contract.But if your only selling point is that the trains run on time, you do at the very least have to ensure the trains do, in fact, run on time. Over the past two days, West Indies demonstrated to Pakistan the precarity of that assumption. Any denunciation of Pakistan’s playing style over the past three Tests largely circled around whether these were sporting wickets of if they were doing Pakistan’s long-term prospects hard; that victory would be achieved was almost assumed. Before this Test, Aqib was already referencing the next World Test Championship cycle and how Pakistan would replicate these wickets because they needed to win “all their Test matches” at home to qualify for the final.Yet, results – on these surfaces more than perhaps any other – can tilt substantially on the flip of a coin. Pakistan were on the right side of it in two of the first three Test matches they won this way, but no pitch can guarantee you won’t have to bat fourth. And while three out of four wins is a vastly improved Test run than any Pakistan have managed at home in years, West Indies hoisting Pakistan by their own petard in Multan was a reminder of how few data points we have to extrapolate meaningfully into the future. Brendon McCullum’s “Bazball” approach to the England Test side began with a similar uptick in results to equally wild optimism over the first season, but longer sample sizes can provide surprisingly sobering reality checks.Pakistan were willing to ignore drawbacks of playing on a turner – like the toll it would take on batters’ confidence•AFP/Getty ImagesBut Pakistan have, to their credit, provided consistent clarity on their future intentions. An on-paper soft draw over the next cycle has encouraged Pakistan to dream of a possible slot at the WTC final in 2027, with the path invariably running through home wins. Masood backed his coach up, promising domestic cricket on similar pitches to help batters cope with opposition spin better.But Pakistan have to guard against chasing their own tails here; they may find they’re preparing for the season just passed than the one that follows. This was billed as the “bumper home Test season” with seven home games across three series, but it has come and gone, with their spin strategy “a new one for our batters, too” as Masood said. It may not be quite as new for them when the next season does roll around.Pakistan are scheduled to host South Africa later this year and then welcome Sri Lanka – a side that, in any case, they are unlikely to want to curate uber-spin tracks for – for two Tests in 2026. A year of honing batters’ spin techniques on pitches that have nothing for red-ball quicks is unlikely to be of much assistance when they travel away between March and August next year, five of which come in West Indies and England. Not to mention, of course, that in Pakistan, where the domestic red-ball season is jostled around at the mercy of different priorities, two years might as well be an epoch.The most flippant criticism of Aqibball, as it has come to be known, is that it was a short-term fix. But Aqib and Masood have made clear they don’t view it as short term, and Jomel Warrican’s West Indies showed them it may not necessarily even be a fix.