Key Points

Former England cricketer Mark Butcher tore into Ravindra Jadeja's bowling performance in the Leeds Test, calling it shockingly ineffective. He also questioned India's decision to play Shardul Thakur instead of Kuldeep Yadav. England's Ben Duckett starred with a match-winning 149, while India's batting collapsed despite a strong first-innings lead. The defeat left India struggling to contain England's aggressive approach.

Key Points: Mark Butcher Slams Jadeja's Bowling as India Lose Leeds Test

  • Butcher calls Jadeja's bowling ineffective in Leeds Test
  • Questions India's selection of Shardul Thakur over Kuldeep Yadav
  • Ben Duckett's 149 leads England to victory
  • India's batting collapses despite strong first-innings lead
3 min read

Would liken it to owning a hammer but punching nails...: Butcher slams Jadeja's bowling at Leeds

Former England cricketer Mark Butcher criticizes Ravindra Jadeja's poor bowling in the Leeds Test, comparing it to "owning a hammer but punching nails."

"I could not believe how poorly he bowled. I would liken it to owning a hammer but punching nails in with your fist instead. - Mark Butcher"

London, June 26

Former England cricketer Mark Butcher criticised Indian all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja for his poor bowling utilisation of the rough during the first Test at Leeds against England, calling it "owning a hammer but punching nails in with your fist", reported Wisden Cricket Weekly.

The new-look Team India failed to chase 371 runs during the Leeds Test against England, with opener Ben Duckett's swashbuckling 149 and watchful Joe Root's fifty contributing big to the team's win. During the second innings, Jadeja took 1/104 in 24 overs, getting the over of skipper Ben Stokes. However, England, particularly Duckett, neutralised Jadeja's threat very well, using the reverse sweep to their advantage.

Speaking on the Wisden Cricket Weekly Podcast, Butcher said about Jadeja, "I could not believe how poorly he bowled. I would liken it to owning a hammer but punching nails in with your fist instead - not landing the ball in the rough at all until, basically, it was too late. That was extraordinary."

"You talk about experience, and he has all the experience in the world. Somehow, it didn't seem to click to him or Rishabh Pant, the keeper, that it might be a good idea not to keep missing the rough all day to the left-handers," he added.

Butcher also slammed Team India's selection, particularly of bowling all-rounder Shardul Thakur, as one of the reasons why they looked ineffective, and they could have gone for spinner Kuldeep Yadav. Shardul could not get into double digits while batting and took a total of two wickets across the match, leaking runs at a high economy rate.

"The issue around the lineup itself... how much more interesting might that last day have been had they gone for Kuldeep Yadav instead of Shardul Thakur. Thakur had had a really poor game until that one over where he gave India a tiny sniff at the back-end," he said.

"If you are not contributing with the bat down there at No.8, you damn well be taking wickets, and be in the game as a bowler for more of the game than he was," he concluded.

Coming to the match, India was put to bat first by England. Centuries from Yashasvi Jaiswal (101), skipper Shubman Gill (147) and Rishabh Pant (134) pushed India to 471, with Ben Stokes being the leading bowler with figures of 4/66.

England also delivered a fine reply with the bat, as a century from Ollie Pope (106) and fifties from Harry Brook (99) and Ben Duckett (62) pushed them to 465, giving India a slender six-run lead. Jasprit Bumrah did take a fifer, but did not get a lot of support from other bowlers.

India took a strong lead in the second innings, with centuries from KL Rahul (137) and Pant (118) taking them to 364. India led by 370 runs, but it was a lower-order collapse that prevented the lead from being even more massive. Brydon Carse and Josh Tongue took three wickets to stand out among bowlers.

In the chase of 371 runs, England started off well with a 188-run stand between Zak Crawley (65) and Duckett (149). However, a few quick strikes reduced them to 253/4, placing India in a balanced spot. However, Joe Root (53*) and Jamie Smith (44*) took England home, despite two wickets each from Prasidh Krishna and Thakur.

Duckett took home the 'Player of the Match' award.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

R
Rahul K.
Butcher is right about Jadeja's bowling - he's usually so accurate but looked completely off-color in this match. When you have a world-class spinner like him, you expect him to exploit those rough patches better. Hope he bounces back in the next Test! 🇮🇳🏏
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Priya M.
The real issue was team selection. Why play Thakur when Kuldeep could've given us more variety? England's left-handers were having a picnic against our bowling attack. Management needs to be more flexible with selections abroad.
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Amit S.
Jadeja had one bad match - happens to the best! Let's not forget his match-winning performances in past. But yes, England's use of reverse sweep was brilliant. Our bowlers need to adapt quicker to such tactics. #SupportTeamIndia
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Sanjay V.
The batting was actually decent with multiple centuries. But bowling let us down big time. Bumrah can't do everything alone - others need to step up. And what's with our field placements? Too defensive when England were chasing!
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Neha T.
Duckett played out of his skin, gotta give him credit. But our bowlers should have planned better against him after seeing his form in first innings. Jadeja-Pant combo is usually so sharp, surprised they didn't adjust quicker.
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Vikram J.
England outplayed us tactically. Their use of sweep shots against our spinners was a masterclass. We need to develop counters for such situations - maybe bowl more straighter ones or vary the pace. The series is still open though! 💪

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