'You might not be able to do that with Axar Patel' - Irfan Pathan feels India will miss Ravindra Jadeja in Asia Cup

The Indian team suffered a major setback when Ravindra Jadeja was ruled out for the remainder of the ongoing Asia Cup 2022. Jadeja had played a key role in India’s win against Pakistan in their first game of the tournament, but he will be missing out in the upcoming fixture which is scheduled against Pakistan again.

Irfan Pathan has identified a particular area in which Ravindra Jadeja's absence from the remaining period of the Asia Cup 2022 will have a significant negative impact on the Indian team. On Sunday, September 4, the Men in Blue will play Pakistan in the Super Four match in Dubai and Axar Patel has been named Jadeja’s replacement.

Jadeja, in the game against Pakistan, was promoted up the order to bat at No.4, and he stayed on the crease till the final over before being dismissed. Pathan believes that such a step can not be taken in Axar Patel’s case if he’s included in the playing combination. While speaking to Star Sports, during a conversation, Irfan Pathan said:

"Axar Patel is the absolutely correct like-to-like replacement. The only problem is that Jadeja had become such a fantastic batter that you could have batted him up the order, you might not be able to do that with Axar."

There will definitely be some issues: Pathan

Jadeja’s knee injury will now be a major concern for India. The team needs an all-rounder like Jadeja, and he’s not just good with the bat and ball, but he’s a brilliant fielder on the ground. With the T20 World Cup 2022 just a few weeks away, the Indian team would wish for Jadeja’s speedy recovery. Pathan also hoped for the same as he continued:

"You will get good bowling and fielding, there is no problem about that, but there will definitely be some issues regarding that change you could have done in the batting. So we hope that Ravindra Jadeja comes back after getting fit as soon as possible."

India’s first game against Pakistan was a thriller. Jadeja and Hardik Pandya kept the game going till the last over and went on to share a 52-run stand for the fifth wicket before the latter finished off the chase with a six after Jadeja’s shocking dismissal.