PERTH, (Reuters) – Holders India marched into the quarter-finals of the World Cup with their fourth consecutive win but all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja’s form with the bat has left captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni a worried man.
Left-arm spinner Jadeja has three triple centuries in India’s first-class cricket, but has scored 3, 2 and 13 in his three outings with the bat in the tournament.
The 26-year-old walked into bat at number seven yesterday with India tottering at 107-5 against West Indies chasing 183 for victory but his innings ended with a miscued hook shot off Andre Russell after a 27-run stand with Dhoni.
Dhoni, who took India home with an unbeaten 45, was not amused and told Jadeja it is time to step up.
“He needs to improve and needs to step up really. We have a lot of faith in him but at the end of the day you can’t really play with hope,” Dhoni told reporters at the WACA. “What you want is actual performance on the field.
“He has that capability, he is definitely talented. He needs to keep believing in himself.
“Every batsman is tested in a few areas. They will bowl short-pitched deliveries to him, he will have to find a way in which he can tackle it.”
India also have Akshar Patel in their squad, who bowls left-arm spin and bats in the lower order. Jadeja has been preferred over him because of his batting.
Yet Dhoni said another option for India would be to move Jadeja, who has taken six wickets in the tournament, higher up the batting order.
