‘…was affected by Jadeja’s absence’: Manjrekar after IND’s poor batting show

SA vs Ind: While most fans criticized the Indian batting for their poor show, former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar felt that the absence of all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja hurt the side immensely.

Centurion: At one point, India were reduced to 121 for six and it looked like the end was nigh in the Boxing Day Test at the SuperSport Park in Centurion on Tuesday. Then KL Rahul showed perseverance to rescue India from that precarious situation with a 70*. While most fans criticized the Indian batting for their poor show, former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar felt that the absence of all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja hurt the side immensely.

“India’s batting was definitely affected by Jadeja’s absence as his overseas batting in Tests was sensational. I don’t think it matters much with the ball because it can get interesting if the ball isn’t spinning. Then you need someone who deceives in the air and Ashwin is a better option. But if they want to score some quick runs, they won’t have anything Jadeja offers,” Manjrekar said on ESPNCricinfo.

Kagiso Rabada was at his lethal best, hitting the stuffing out of India’s best ‘prima donnas’ with a five on a track that offered extra and variable bounce as South Africa took control of the match on the opening day.

KL Rahul (70 innings, 105 balls) continued his love affair with Supersport Park and showed excellent temperament on a difficult pitch, taking India to 208 for 8 in 59 overs when rain forced early stumps.

Rabada (5/44 in 17 overs) bowled two of the most intimidating and incisive spells we have seen in recent times, completely rocking the Indian batting line-up that was struggling to cope with the conditions was put.

Rabada, one of the best fast bowlers in contemporary cricket, bowled an absolute peach to dismiss Virat Kohli (38 off 64 balls) with the old ball after dismissing Indian skipper Rohit Sharma (5) in his first over.