Rajkot: India spinner Ravindra Jadeja on Wednesday announced himself fit for the third Test against England and said he planned to keep his bowling “simple” against the opposition’s attacking mindset.
The left-handed all-rounder missed the second of the series’ five Tests due to a hamstring injury but will be available at Rajkot from Thursday with the series level at 1-1.
England won the opener before India bounced back with a win but the tourists’ attacking “Bazball” style of play has remained the talking point of the series so far.
“It is not that England are difficult to beat but they play with a different style and it takes some time to understand that,” Jadeja told reporters.
“Once you understand their style and approach we can plan our game accordingly,” he added.
“We will keep it simple and let them do whatever they want to, we have our game plan and if we stick to it then there are chances of being successful.”
England batsman Ollie Pope frustrated the Indian spinners with the unorthodox reverse sweep during his match-winning 196 in the opener.
India came back in the next Test to defeat the tourists by 106 runs, with pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah returning a match haul of nine wickets and Yashasvi Jaiswal hitting 209 in the first innings.
“We just have to play good cricket because the opposition is good,” Jadeja said.
“We will have to give our best to win the match. We will try to play as a team, like we did in the last match and hope for one or two outstanding individual performances.”
‘Written in destiny’
India will be without Virat Kohli, who is missing the series due to personal reasons and K.L. Rahul, who is recovering from an injury he picked up in the opener.
Batsman Sarfaraz Khan is expected to make his debut after Rajat Patidar played his first Test in Visakhapatnam last week.
Jadeja said the introduction of a crop of new players was no cause for concern.
“All these new boys are coming into the side on the back of playing a lot of first-class cricket,” said Jadeja.
“These are seasoned players, they know how to play long innings and have an idea how it goes in Test cricket. It is ideal place for them since they have played on such wickets a lot and they have an idea how the pitch would behave.”
Jadeja’s spin partner Ravichandran Ashwin needs one wicket to reach 500 in Tests.
“I am very excited because I have been playing with him for 12 to 13 years and to achieve this milestone ... is a really big thing,” said Jadeja.
“Whatever is written in destiny ... he will complete his 500 wickets in Rajkot.”
Wood returns
England brought fast bowler Mark Wood into their playing XI, opting to go with two seamers for the first time in the series.
Wood regained his place in the squad after England decided to change the three-spinners-and-one-seamer combination they have used so far in the five-match series, currently tied 1-1.
Wood, 34, played as the solitary seamer in the first Test before being replaced by James Anderson for the second match.
Spinner Shoaib Bashir will sit out the third Test starting Thursday on a green-tinged Rajkot wicket that is likely to assist the pacers.
Bashir’s spin partner Rehan Ahmed, 19, kept his place in the line-up after resolving minor visa issues.
Ahmed, 19, had a single-entrance visa that expired once he left for England’s mid-series break in the UAE.
Ahmed, England’s youngest cricketer in all three formats, has taken eight wickets in the series at an average of 36.37.
The Rajkot game will see England skipper Ben Stokes play his 100th Test, the 16th England cricketer to achieve the feat.
