Ravindra Jadeja Strengthens His Legacy, Breaking VVS Laxman’s SENA Milestone

Ravindra Jadeja could face the BCCI's ire, after having breached protocol in order to travel separately to the Edgbaston Cricket Ground separately.

Ravindra Jadeja Strengthens His Legacy, Breaking VVS Laxman’s SENA Milestone

Ravindra Jadeja went VVS Laxman's run-scoring record in SENA countries, following his 89-run innings against England. (via India Today)

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While Shubman Gill‘s double-century against England made headlines, it somewhat overshadowed a crucial 89-run innings from veteran Indian all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja. The 36-year-old further cemented his legacy by surpassing VVS Laxman‘s impressive SENA record.

Ravindra Jadeja arrived on to the crease on Day 1 of the second Test, at a perilous position after India lost the wickets of Rishabh Pant and Nitish Kumar Reddy in the span of an over. He then forged a vital 203-run partnership with captain Shubman Gill, contributing 89 runs off 137 balls himself. Jadeja’s innings comprised ten fours and a six, supporting the Indian captain as he raced towards his double-century.

Jadeja himself narrowly missed out on a well-deserved hundred, falling short by just 11 runs, before he was dismissed by Josh Tongue. He had recently made history for holding the number one spot on the ICC Test All-Rounder Rankings for over an unprecedented 1,500 days. However, Jadeja’s form prior to the Edgbaston Test was dismal, having failed to even register a single 30-plus score in his last six innings. 

With his 89-run innings, Ravindra Jadeja surpassed VVS Laxman‘s run-scoring record in SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand, and Australia) countries. Jadeja now boasts 1165 runs in 42 Test innings batting at number six or lower in SENA nations, exceeding Laxman’s 1108 runs in 32 innings from similar positions. Nonetheless, he remains behind MS Dhoni (1731 runs) and Kapil Dev (1253 runs) on this list.

Regaining his long-lost form, Jadeja equaled Kapil Dev’s record of the most 50+ scores by an Indian player in SENA countries, while batting at no. 7 or lower. After hitting his 23rd career Test half-century, he emphatically performed his iconic sword celebration. This moment also evoked memories of his crucial 104-run innings at Edgbaston during the 2022 India-England series, where he also shared a 222-run stand with Rishabh Pant.

At the close of his innings at Edgbaston, Ravindra Jadeja also made history by becoming the first player ever to achieve the remarkable double of 2,000 runs and 100 wickets in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC). Jadeja’s record now stands at 2,010 runs at an average of 37.92, including three centuries and 13 fifties in 41 WTC appearances. He has also taken 132 wickets, with six five-wicket hauls and an equal number of four-wicket hauls.

Overall, Ravindra Jadeja has an impressive Test record for India across 82 matches, accumulating 3,495 runs at an average of 35.3, including 23 fifties and four hundreds. His bowling stats are equally remarkable, with 324 wickets at an average of 24.71, featuring 15 five-wicket hauls.

Ravindra Jadeja, VVS Laxman Among Unpaid Kochi Tuskers Players as 538 Crore BCCI Dispute Resurfaces

Defunct franchise Kochi Tuskers Kerala, which was a part of the IPL during the 2011 season, saw an end to its decade-long legal dispute with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The Bombay High Court, most recently, directed the BCCI to pay INR 538 crores as an arbitral award to KTK owners. 

Kochi Tuskers Kerala unpaid players Ravindra Jadeja
Rabindra Jadeja, VVS Laxman are the players yet to be paid part of their salaries by Kochi Tuskers Kerala. (via Sportzpics)

Should the former KTK owners receive the due funds, they could settle the remaining salaries owed to unpaid players. A recent report indicated that many former players, including Ravindra Jadeja, VVS Laxman, and Steve Smith, are still awaiting approximately 35 percent of their salaries. Most notably, Sri Lankan legend Mahela Jayawardene is owed around INR 2 crore from his total INR 6.8 crore salary.

Besides Jayawardene, former New Zealand batter Brendon McCullum is owed around INR 75 lakhs. Other unpaid players include former Indian wicket-keeper Parthiv Patel, 2011 World Cup winner S. Sreesanth, and uncapped players like Raiphi Gomez and Padmanabhan Prasanth.