When Kedar Jadhav was drafted in at the last moment to play the Deodhar Trophy match in Delhi on Thursday, on the same day as that of the team selection, Jadhav would have hoped it was a chance to prove his match fitness and make his way back into the ODI squad. He would have dearly hoped to do it at this moment, considering the next match is at his home ground, Pune. However, he was left shocked when told moments after the match that he was not part of the XV announced while the match was on.
This is another case of mixed messages from the selectors, after the chairman of selectors had said at the announcement of the squad for the first two ODIs that Jadhav would be the part of the rest of the series. The only thing holding Jadhav back was his fitness: he had injured his hamstring once again in the Asia Cup final. Jadhav cleared his fitness tests at the NCA in Bengaluru, and then proceeded to Delhi for this game.
“The rehab was good, I cleared all the fitness tests, I was cleared match fit, which is why I was playing here,” Jadhav said. Jadhav ran hard in his 25-ball 41, pinching three straight couples in the last over of the innings. He bowled and fielded too, although he did leave the field for a few minutes before coming back on. However, it is unlikely there was any assessment made on the day because the team was announced at around 3.30pm IST. Three selectors were at the Feroz Shah Kotla, watching the match, so it is unlikely the meeting happened today.
Jadhav’s reaction when informed he was not selected spoke a lot even though he was too shocked to react verbally. “I didn’t know [that I have not been selected],” Jadhav said in a press conference minutes after the match. “Obviously, I have to see [why].”
When asked if he was surprised because form and quality are not a concern with Jadhav, and he had proved his fitness at both the NCA and Kotla, Jadhav said: “Let’s see. I don’t know. You are the first one to tell me this [that I have not been picked]. I have to see why they have not picked me.”
There can be benefit of doubt for the selectors that they could not have informed Jadhav of the reasons while he was playing, but why rush him to Kotla if he was not to be picked and if his match fitness was not going to have any bearing on the selection. They couldn’t have possibly assessed that Jadhav was not fit after he had cleared the NCA tests and also lasted the game at Kotla.
“They pick you only if you clear all the tests [at NCA] and you are completely fine,” Jadhav said.
In another context, Jadhav said there was no need to doubt yourself despite repeated injuries as long as the NCA has cleared you. “Only if you have followed all the rehab, all the fitness rules, all the exercises do they clear you at NCA. As long as they clear you, you shouldn’t be having any doubt when playing on the field. You should express yourself. That is what you are supposed to do. When I get clearance from NCA, I don’t hold myself back to play or to dive or to bowl.”
Jadhav’s hamstring – “compromised”, as his CSK coach Stephen Fleming described it during commentary – has long been a source of frustration. He missed almost the whole IPL because of that, and then reinjured himself during the Asia Cup. “Whatever injury it might be, when you are playing well, batting well, bowling well, it sets you back,” Jadhav said. “You don’t know how long you will be out for, and when you do come back whether you will rediscover the touch you were in. And you lose out on the matches in between. It hurts, but then you have to accept it and move on.”
These three ODIs against West Indies are the last India play this year. The only short-format international cricket left is a bunch of T20Is. Jadhav doesn’t know whether he will be selected for those. He is now expected to turn out for Maharashtra against Vidarbha in Ranji Trophy at the start of November.
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