Ranji Trophy: Kedar Jadhav smokes his second century of season
What's the story
Extending his purple patch, Maharashtra batter Kedar Jadhav smoked a magnificent century during his side's clash against Mumbai in the ongoing Ranji Trophy. The veteran swashbuckler batted with intent as he ended up scoring 128 off 168 balls. His knock was laced with 18 boundaries and a maximum. This was Jadhav's second century of the season. Here we look at his stats.
Performance
An impactful knock from Jadhav
Mumbai opted to bowl after winning the toss at Mumbai's Brabourne Stadium. Maharashtra were tottering at 23/2 when Jadhav arrived in the middle. He batted aggressively and pushed Mumbai on the back foot. The 37-year-old added 105 runs alongside opener Siddhesh Veer (48). His brilliance helped Maharashtra cross the 350-run mark. Jadhav eventually fell prey to Tushar Deshpande.
Purple patch
Jadhav's purple patch this season
The ongoing season marked Jadhav's comeback to First-Class cricket after the 2019-20 season. He celebrated the same with a breathtaking 283 in his comeback game against Assam. Jadhav followed his double-ton with scores of 56, 15, 71, and 128. Hence, he touched the 50-run mark four times in five outings this season. Overall, he has scored 553 runs this season so far at 110.6.
Stats
His overall numbers in FC cricket
Jadhav has been a stalwart in red-ball cricket and his record states the same. He has so far scored 5,719 runs in 82 games at a 47-plus average and 70-plus strike rate. The tally includes 16 tons and 22 half-centuries (Highest score: 329). Notably, he was the highest run-scorer of the 2013/14 Ranji Trophy season, having slammed 1,223 runs from 17 innings at 87.36.
ODIs
Jadhav was once a mainstay batter in India's ODI side
Notably, Jadhav has also made a significant mark at the highest level. He made his international debut in November 2014 against Sri Lanka. He featured in 73 ODIs and 9 T20Is for India, having slammed 1,389 and 122 runs, respectively. Among batters with at least 1,300 ODI runs, Jadhav is the only Indian to record a 40-plus average and 100-plus strike rate in ODIs.
Dropped
Jadhav fell out of favor with selectors
Jadhav is a batting all-rounder, who chips in with his spin bowling. He last played an international in February 2020 against New Zealand in Auckland. He then fell out of favor with the selectors due to inconsistency and fitness issues. Although Jadhav played a few games in the next two IPL seasons for Chennai Super Kings (2020) and Hyderabad Sunrisers (2021), his form dipped.