“You can’t blame anyone”: Ravindra Jadeja on Team India’s sudden collapse in first innings of third Test against New Zealand

Ravindra Jadeja defended his teammates after a sudden batting collapse in the first innings of the third Test at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Tte hosts were 86/4 and still trail by 149 runs. Jadeja took five wickets to help India National Cricket Team in restricting the visitors to 235 runs.

The Men in Blue lost Yashasvi Jaiswal, Mohammed Siraj and Virat Kohli 15 minutes before the stumps on Day 1

“Everything changed in 10 minutes. It is a team game and you can’t blame anyone. It happens in cricket. Everyone ends up making small mistakes. The remaining batters will have to stitch partnerships. We will have to give better performances with the bat to bring the second innings factor into play.

“When you are 0-2 down, people say that you panicked and you made a mistake. But when you are leading 2-0, then everyone says that it happens. You will make mistakes in a team game. The remaining batters will try to bat as long as possible to get close to New Zealand’s total or even take a lead,” Ravindra Jadeja told reporters.

Jadeja also reflected on his performance in the series.

“I haven’t been at my best. We repeated same mistakes in the first two Tests and that’s why we are 0+2 behind.

New Zealand haven’t allowed the lower-order to contribute with the bat. “There is always pressure. It is not about the contributions or failure of the top order. You are expected to score runs in every match. You can’t relax whether you are ahead or behind in the series.”

For Jadeja, India are still in the game.

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