India thrashed Sri Lanka on Thursday (February 24), taking a 1-0 series lead in the T20I series thanks to blazing knocks from Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer. After being put in to bat first at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow, Ishan hit 89 runs off 56 balls, and Iyer was unbeaten on 57 runs off 28 balls as the pair guided India to a massive 199 for two.
Rohit Sharma, the captain, hit 44 off 32 balls, including two fours and a six, and added a century stand with Ishan to put Sri Lanka on the back-foot early on. When Lahiru Kumara bowled Rohit, the opening stand came to an end.
During the batting onslaught, all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja returned to the fray, but only managed three runs off four balls. He then went on to have bowling figures of 1/28, making him the only Indian bowler to bowl his entire four-over quota.
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Although the decision to promote Jadeja up the order may have surprised some, former India wicket-keeper Parthiv Patel believes the all-rounder has recently demonstrated his batting prowess. For this year's T20 World Cup, India will be looking for the ideal team combination, and Parthiv believes Jadeja fits the bill perfectly. He called the Saurashtra all-rounder a "3D" pick because he can help in all three areas.
"Jadeja has earned his reputation as a batting wizard who can take up any kind of responsibility. He's done that in T20Is and ODIs and we saw him doing that against England in Test cricket as well. We all know his batting ability... and if he's fit for the T20 World Cup, then he should bat at the No. 6 position. If India picks four seamers in Australia, then Deepak Chahar or Shardul Thakur can bat at the No. 7 spot," Parthiv told Cricbuzz.
"According to me, Jadeja is fully able to bat at No. 6 or even No. 5 in the batting line-up. He's that kind of player who can be used as a bowler and batter as well... and we all know how good his fielding skills are. He's the 3D player in the true sense," he further added.
The decision to promote Jadeja was explained by skipper Rohit Sharma, who stated that he wants the multi-utility player to bat higher in the order. India had named six changes to the playing XI from their previous match against the West Indies, including Jadeja, who had been out for the past two months recovering from an injury.
"Very happy with Jadeja's return. We want more from him that is why we asked him to bat higher. You will see that happening more and more in the games that he plays for India. I want him to bat up the order more," said Rohit at the post-match presentation.
"He is a very improved batter, so we will try and see if we can promote him going forward. We are very clear with what we want to achieve with him in white ball cricket." he added.
