Mumbai: Ravindra Jadeja brought his A-game to the third and final Test between India and New Zealand at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium on Friday, equalling the record of Pakistan’s Abdul Qadir for most five-wicket hauls by a spinner in home Tests.
Jadeja’s performance matched the legendary Abdul Qadir, as both now hold 12 five-wicket hauls at home—a milestone that places them joint-eighth on the all-time list of Test spinners led by Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan with 45 five-wicket hauls from 73 Tests.
The five-for, his 12th at home, took him past a few other legends, including Kapil Dev, Glenn McGrath and Waqar Younis.
Among all spinners, only seven players are ahead of him on the list. Among active cricketers, only R Ashwin (29) and Shakib Al Hasan (14) have more home five-fors.
Incidentally, Jadeja became the tenth left-arm spinner to take a Test five-for at the Wankhede stadium. At the same ground, Ajaz Patel, also playing the Test, took all ten wickets against India in 2021.
Jadeja’s outstanding spell of 22-1-65-5 dismantled New Zealand’s batting lineup, bundling the Black Caps out for 235 in 65.4 overs after the visitors chose to bowl first.
–IANS