Sanjay Manjrekar caused a stir in the cricket world when he declared Ravindra Jadeja as his "favorite cricketer" following Jadeja's exceptional bowling performance in the ongoing third and final Test between India and New Zealand at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
Jadeja displayed remarkable skill with the ball, taking five wickets in his 22 overs during the match. His double strikes in the second and third sessions were crucial in helping India gain the upper hand against New Zealand. Notably, Jadeja dismissed key batsmen such as Will Young, Tom Blundell, and Glenn Phillips, limiting the Kiwi team to 235 runs in their first innings.
In addition to Jadeja's stellar performance, Washington Sundar also made significant contributions with the ball, taking four wickets for 81 runs. Together, Jadeja and Sundar played a pivotal role in restricting New Zealand's first innings total.
Sanjay Manjrekar took to social media to praise Jadeja for his outstanding display of skill and composure under pressure. Impressed by Jadeja's heroics at the Wankhede Stadium, Manjrekar expressed his admiration by labeling Jadeja as his "favorite cricketer."
“Over the moon for my favorite cricketer, Jadeja. A fifer! He needed that! And so did the team," Sanjay Manjrekar posed on X.
Recently, Jadeja has been facing challenges in delivering strong performances with both bat and ball in Test cricket. The Indian all-rounder's last notable achievement was scoring a half-century against Bangladesh in Chennai. Despite taking 10 wickets in the previous home Test series against Bangladesh, he only managed to secure 6 wickets in the first two Tests against New Zealand.
Furthermore, Jadeja's performance in the T20 World Cup 2024 was also underwhelming. Consequently, Manjrekar believes that it is imperative for Jadeja to regain his form and contribute significantly with the ball, not only for his own benefit but also for the team. This is especially crucial as they are gearing up for the upcoming Test tour of Australia this month.
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