Galle Test: Time for Indian cricket to celebrate ‘Sir’ Jadeja’s landmarks

The third day of the Galle Test saw an exceptional century by young Sonal Dinusha as India’s left-arm spinner Manav Suthar claimed four wickets, but the day surely belonged to Ravindra Jadeja. When Keshara Nuwantha’s mistimed shot ended in Shubman Gill’s hands, it marked the 350th Test wicket for Indian cricket’s man for all seasons for almost 15 years.

It’s time to revisit and celebrate the 37-year-old’s contribution to Indian cricket — as the show may not last for too long. The landmark on Monday makes him only the fourth cricketer in history to complete the ‘double’ of 4,000 runs and 350 wickets in the longer format — the other three being the great Kapil Dev, Ian Botham and Daniel Vettori. Men who are regarded as icons of the game while the man from Jamnagar only had the ‘Sir Jadeja’ social media joke stick to him for years.

If that eventually spiralled into a famous nickname, what hurt him more was the tag of a ‘bits-and-pieces cricketer’ by TV pundit Sanjay Manjrekar during the 2019 ICC World Cup. Jadeja, who wears a trademark, infectious smile at all times but is not known for a way with words like Ravi Ashwin — his partner in crime for years — cheekily dismissed Manjrekar’s comment as ‘verbal diarrhoea’, and would now have the Mumbaikar eat his words again.

Let the numbers tell the story first. Jadeja is now the fifth Indian bowler to reach the 350-wickets mark in Tests behind Anil Kumble (619), Ashwin (537), Kapil Dev (434) and Harbhajan Singh (417). Among left-arm spinners, only Sri Lanka’s Rangana Herath (433) and New Zealand’s Vettori (362) remain ahead of him and it’s a matter of conjecture whether he could end up as the highest wicket taker among the practitioners of his trade.

Add to this his six centuries, coupled with numerous rearguard actions which often came at number eight or nine owing to the heavyweight Indian batting line-up — not to speak of his natural athleticism anywhere on the field — and it makes for a rare combination not just in Tests but all formats. Jadeja was, after all, one of the few players in the Virat-Rohit era who fitted in all three formats before signing off from the T20Is after India ended their ICC title jinx in 2024.

The journey, however, was anything but smooth. Manjrekar was not the only doubter on the way. Just ponder this: way back in 2012, he became the first Indian to score three triple centuries in first-class cricket and the weight of runs opened the doors for a breakthrough in Tests. His third, an unbeaten 320 for Saurashtra against Railways, placed him on a list that included Sir Don Bradman, Brian Lara, W.G. Grace and Wally Hammond.

Still, many refused to take the batter seriously while his bowling, was often considered as defensive and without variety. The ‘Sir’ nickname, bestowed on him by M.S. Dhoni during the latter's tenure as captain, stuck to him but then Jadeja did not argue with the joke. He simply outlasted it. It’s a pity that he was never considered for captaincy or even the deputy’s role in any format — leaving one to wonder what it takes.