3 weeks ago
Ravindra Jadeja: last man standing from India's 2015 Test core
Ravindra Jadeja is a famous cricket player from India.
He started out mostly as a bowler who could spin the ball.
But he worked very hard and learned to bat really well too.
Now he helps his team with bowling, batting, and amazing fielding.
All of his old teammates from 2015 have stopped playing.
But Jadeja is still on the team, even in 2026.
His coach says the secret is that Jadeja changed his mindset and believed in himself.
When he was 16, his mother died, and he almost gave up cricket.
He stayed because he remembered she raised him to be a cricketer.
His father told him to just perform well on the field, and that is what he still does today.
Ravindra Jadeja is the only player from India's 2015 Test core still active, after Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane all retired.
He rejoined India's Test side in late 2015 against South Africa and grew from a premier left-arm spinner into a complete all-rounder.
A maiden Test century against West Indies in 2018, a career-best 175 not out against Sri Lanka and a 2022 hundred in England confirmed his batting.
Coach Niraj Odedra credits a mindset change: Jadeja had to believe he was more than just a bowler and now bats anywhere from No. 4 to No. 8.
In a warm-up match against a Sri Lanka Cricket XI this month, Jadeja batted at No. 4 and made 63 off 117 balls after Shubman Gill could not bat.
Jadeja has repeatedly come back from major setbacks, including a 2018 Test omission and multiple injuries, such as a 2018 England tour where he responded with an unbeaten 86 and seven wickets.
- Who
- Ravindra Jadeja, India's veteran all-rounder, alongside retired teammates Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, R Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane, and Saurashtra head coach Niraj Odedra.
- What
- A profile of Jadeja as the last remaining member of India's 2015 Test core, tracing his evolution from left-arm spinner to complete all-rounder and his ability to outlast every teammate's retirement.
- Where
- India and Sri Lanka, with career highlights also in England, Australia, South Africa, West Indies and Bangladesh.
- When
- From August 2015, when India toured Sri Lanka under Virat Kohli's captaincy, through August 2026, when Jadeja played a warm-up against a Sri Lanka Cricket XI, with earlier career moments dating to 2005.
- Why
- A changed mindset, his father's advice to 'perform on the ground,' and repeated comebacks from injuries and omissions kept him in the Test side while his whole generation retired.
Doubters and critics
Jadeja and his supporters
A bowler who bats, or a complete all-rounder?
Doubters and critics
Many people have long perceived Jadeja as 'a bowler who can only bowl' — a specialist spinner whose batting is secondary.
Jadeja and his supporters
Coach Niraj Odedra insists Jadeja was a very good batsman from a young age and is a 'complete all-rounder' who takes wickets, scores at any position from No. 4 to No. 8, and produces match-changing fielding.
Cast aside or proven in adversity?
Doubters and critics
Jadeja has repeatedly been left out or slowed down, including missing the 2015 Sri Lanka tour, watching the first four Tests of the 2018 England tour, and suffering numerous injuries.
Jadeja and his supporters
He has answered each setback with strong comebacks, such as an unbeaten 86 and seven wickets in the fifth Test of the 2018 England tour, which he said 'changed everything' for his confidence.
Key facts
- Player
- Ravindra Jadeja
- Role
- All-rounder — left-arm spinner and middle-order batsman
- Test comeback
- Late 2015 home series vs South Africa, with match figures of 8/76
- Maiden Test century
- 2018 vs West Indies
- Career-best Test score
- 175 not out vs Sri Lanka
- 2025 England Test series
- 516 runs in five Tests, including 107 not out and 4/143 at Manchester
- Generation now retired
- Ashwin (2024), Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli (May 2025), Pujara, then Rahane
- 2026 Sri Lanka tour warm-up
- 63 off 117 batting at No. 4 after Shubman Gill could not bat
Quotes
Ravindra Jadeja
Indian all‑rounder cricket player
““The most important thing is that he’s a multidimensional player. He’ll get you wickets, he’ll bat wherever you send him, No. 4, No. 6, No. 7 or No. 8, and he’ll still score runs. Then, in the field, he’ll produce a run‑out or a catch that very few others can. He’s a complete all‑rounder. That’s what makes him different from any other cricketer.””
indianexpress.com
““That Test changed everything for me. Poora, complete, game. My performance, my confidence, everything. When you score in English conditions against the best bowling attack, it greatly impacts your confidence.””
indianexpress.com
Sources
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