NEW DELHI: Following India’s narrow loss at Lord’s in the third Test against England, former India captain Sourav Ganguly shared his views on the defeat, pointing out the missed opportunity despite the batting depth in the side. He also lauded Ravindra Jadaja for his resilient knock, backed by tailenders Jasprit bumrah and Mohammed Siraj in a tense finish.India suffered one of their most heartbreaking Test defeats in recent times, going down by 22 runs and falling 1-2 behind in the five-match series. Chasing 193, India were in deep trouble at 82/7 before Jadeja launched a fightback with help from Nitish Kumar Reddy, Bumrah, and Siraj. The last two batters faced a combined 84 deliveries but could only add nine runs. Siraj was eventually bowled in unfortunate fashion, ending India’s spirited chase.Speaking during a press event of the 2025 season Indian Racing Festival (IRF) Driver Draft, Ganguly admitted he was “a little bit disappointed” with India’s batting, given their performances earlier in the series.“They should have got this 190, and when you saw Jadeja guts it out and fight and score the runs, the batting quality in this team is absolutely brilliant, and I think they will be more disappointed than I am because it was an opportunity to get 2-1 up in the series against England. Two more matches to go. I am sure they have left disappointed not getting 190. Especially with the quality of batsmanship there is in the dressing room.“
Ganguly added that even a small contribution from the top-order could have made the difference in India’s favour.“Sad from a team’s point of view, but Jadeja has been exceptional. He is going to continue to play for India as long as he bats and performs like this. He has been around for a long time. Almost 80 Test matches and more than 200 one-day games.”“And now you can see if batting, bowling, fielding, you know, he’s a special player and his batting has really improved over the years with experience and quality. He was actually a top-order batsmen for Saurashtra in his younger days and then became a left-arm spinner. So he has a special player and is a very important part of this team,” he concluded.
During the match, Jadeja also crossed a significant milestone by completing 7,000 international runs. In 361 appearances for India, he has scored 7,018 runs at an average of 33.41, including four centuries and 39 fifties in 302 innings, with a highest score of 175*.In Test cricket, Jadeja has scored 3,697 runs in 83 matches at an average of 36.97, including four hundreds and 26 fifties. His top score of 175* came in this format, which remains his most productive with the bat. So far in this series, he has scored 327 runs in six innings at a staggering average of 109.00, with four fifties and a top score of 89. He is currently the fifth-highest run-scorer in the series.
