"That baffles me" - Former RCB batter's brutal attack on Ravindra Jadeja after ENG vs IND 2025 1st Test

Former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) batter Dinesh Karthik questioned Team India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja's approach while bowling during Day 5 of the first Test against England at Headingley, Leeds. The left-arm spinner returned disappointing figures of 1-104 off 24 overs in the fourth innings as Ben Stokes and co. chased down 371 to claim a series lead.

Ravindra Jadeja was backed to play a massive role in the final innings, and capitalise on the rough outside the left-handed batter's off-stump. With the hosts including some potent southpaws like Ben Duckett and Ben Stokes, the left-arm spinner's role became that much more crucial.

However, the batters were able to dispatch him with ease with an array of reverse sweeps across the first two sessions. After the Tea Break, Jadeja bowled from wide of the crease, making use of the rough to trouble Ben Stokes, eventually dismissing him. However, it came a touch too late for Team India as England were in sight of the target by then.

Dinesh Karthik was puzzled by Ravindra Jadeja refraining from using the rough patch to the full, instead adopting a much straighter line for the majority of the innings.

"He was (Jadeja bowling straight and not into the rough), and that baffles me, because for a man with so much experience, he must know what it means to bowl in the rough. He should have gone wide of the wicket, and bowl into the rough very early on," Dinesh Karthik said on Cricbuzz.

Karthik also outlined how Ben Duckett manipulated the field and did not allow Jadeja or the Indian captain to settle with his relentless sweeps, and finding gaps efficiently.

"What Duckett did today was domination of the purest form of the game, in the most clever manner. The way he just played with Jadeja and Shubman Gill, saying no matter where you put the field, I am going to play that shot," he said.

Ben Duckett scored at a strike rate of 100 against Ravindra Jadeja in the final innings. He scored 38 runs off 38 deliveries, of which 31 runs came off the reverse sweep, including five fours and a six.

"It was all over the place" - Dinesh Karthik slams Indian support bowlers' performance in ENG vs IND 2025 1st Test

Team India's secondary bowlers failed to support Jasprit Bumrah in terms of both support and penetration. The spearhead picked up five wickets in the first innings, while the entirety of the Indian bowling unit just picked up a total of five wickets on Day 5 in 76 overs.

Dinesh Karthik admitted that India does not have a potent bowling attack, and lambasted Prasidh Krishna and Shardul Thakur for not helping the team capitalise on the strong opening spell by Bumrah and Siraj.

"I don't think we genuinely have the skill set beyond the certain bowlers who can actually make inroads, that's a fact. You can't be too hard on the Indian team, they will find bowlers eventually, and they will start defending these scores. Bumrah and Siraj bowled a high quality first spell, they did not get a wicket, but they set it up. Shardul and Prasidh did not bowl consistent lenghts, it was all over the place," Karthik said.

The former wicket-keeper also raised the point of Bumrah potentially feeling the pressure at being the sole genuine wicket-taker in the bowling setup.

"England batters played Bumrah well, but he did try too hard. That comes out of a certain personal feeling wanting to do well for the Indian team, but also knowing that he needs to do it for the Indian team. He realises if he gets a wicket , it is going to help the others," he added.

Bumrah ended wicketless in the second innings as England cautiously played out his spells, while conditions also played a part. His figures read 0-57 in 19 overs, marking the first time he has gone wicketless in an innings, where he has bowled at least 10 overs, since the fifth Test against England in 2024 in Dharamshala.

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Edited by Gokul Nair