‘Jaddu samajh ye T20 hai, idhar no balls allowed nahi’ - Rohit Sharma takes friendly dig at Ravindra Jadeja over no balls

In a lighthearted moment during Day 2 of the Rajkot Test match, India skipper Rohit Sharma had a cheeky exchange with left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja. After Jadeja overstepped the crease a couple of times, Rohit humorously asked him not to bowl no-balls, like he doesn’t in T20 matches.

Rohit playfully advised Jadeja to bowl as if it were a T20 match, where no balls can prove to be extremely expensive. The banter between the two teammates added a touch of humour, in otherwise a very intense Test match. 

“Jaddu samajh ye T20 hai, idhar no balls allowed nahi.” (Jaddu, think this is a T20, here no balls are not allowed) ” Rohit was heard saying in a viral video. 

Notably, Jadeja bowled only four overs on Day 2, conceding 33 runs without claiming a single wicket. However, he had earlier showcased his batting prowess by scoring a century in India’s first innings. Courtesy of his ton, the hosts managed to post 445 runs on the board but now, in the absence of Ravichandran Ashwin, who withdrew from the ongoing third Test to attend a family emergency, the responsibility on Jadeja’s shoulders has increased. 

India went into the Rajkot Test with three spinners - Ashwin, Jadeja, and Kuldeep Yadav, leaving out all-rounder Axar Patel. Kuldeep made an impact early on Day 3, trapping Jonny Bairstow LBW for a duck and then picking up the wicket of Ben Duckett. Jadeja, on the other hand, bowled only one over in the morning session but is likely to bowl more in the afternoon as the spinners are getting some sort of help from the surface.

The Rajkot Test had seen England make a strong start with the bat, posting 207/2 runs on Day 2. Opener Ben Duckett played a scintillating knock, hammering a blazing hundred before getting out on 153 runs. Indian bowlers, who looked lacklustre on Day 2, made a strong comeback on the following day and pushed the guests on the backfoot.