Ravindra Jadeja Asked To Describe MS Dhoni In One World. Reply Wins Internet

NDTV

4 days ago

Veteran India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja said he never thought about playing Test cricket and always believed white ball cricket was his forte. "When I started, I didn't realise that I will play this many games for India in Test cricket. I always believed white ball was my forte and wanted to establish myself there," he said. "I used to feel that Test cricket is a little long as well. Only very sincere players can play for it. This was my mindset initially." Jadeja has credited two individuals named Mahendra — his childhood coach Mahendra Singh Chauhan and former India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni — as key influences in his cricketing journey. Speaking on a podcast hosted by his former teammate Ravichandran Ashwin, Jadeja revealed that both men played defining roles at different stages of his career.
"I started playing in Jamnagar, at a ground called 'Cricket Bungalow', at the age of 8-9. My coach, who is still training at the same ground, is also from Bihar and his name is Mahendra Singh Chauhan. I have told this to Mahi bhai as well that my cricket journey is between two Mahendra's – Mahendra Singh Chauhan & Mahendra Singh Dhoni," Jadeja said.
Jadeja credited Chauhan, a former police officer, for his rise from an early age.
"He used to be a police officer, his mindset was that a sportsperson should be at the peak of his fitness. He used to believe that batting and bowling can be managed but one has to run a lot. My fitness level and fielding skills can be attributed to me running 15-20 kms around Jamnagar,' he added.
Asked to describe Dhoni in one word, Jadeja responded, 'There is no one word to describe his greatness. He is on top of everyone." Jadeja and Ashwin were central to many of Dhoni's strategies on the field, both for India and for Chennai Super Kings in the IPL.
The conversation also touched upon former India captain Virat Kohli, with Jadeja pointing to Kohli's aggressive mindset as a key differentiator in Test cricket.
"It was his positive approach – especially in Tests – the special thing about Virat is that he always wanted the team to pick 20 wickets in a Test match, so he never gives up at all. Be it a three-hour session or 45 overs left, he would still want to pick up all 10 wickets of the opposition," Jadeja said.
Kohli recently stepped away from the longest format, ending his Test career with 9,230 runs in 123 matches at an average of 46.85, including 30 centuries and 31 fifties.