Former Australian cricketer Greg Chappell made a very bold statement regarding India's loss at Lord's against England. He believed that Ravindra Jadeja did his best in taking the pressure while batting on Day 5 of the third Test but also added that he should have been more aggressive while batting with the tailenders. But Chappell had also put equal responsibility for Jadeja's approach on captain Shubman Gill.
The legendary cricketer stated that Jadeja did a great job in giving a shield to Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, but he should have taken some boundaries if he wanted India to win the match. Single runs from Jadeja's bat were not enough for the team to win the match.
He said,
"The Lord's Test also provided a telling moment with the way Jadeja was managed late in the match. Left with the tail, Jadeja did what many specialist batters do in that situation: he shielded the tail, farmed the strike, and played conservatively. On the surface, it was a disciplined innings. But was it the right one?"
Further, he added,
"The truth is, Jadeja was the only recognized batter left. If India were to chase down the target, he had to take calculated risks. His job wasn't to leave balls and collect singles—it was to win the match. That clarity should have come from the dressing room, from the captain. He needed to be told directly, You are the man who has to get this done. The tail's job is to hang in there with you, but you must go for the win."
Chappell praised England captain Ben Stokes for his previous performances in 2019 and the way he backed himself and the team.
He said,
"We saw exactly that from England's Ben Stokes against Australia in Leeds in 2019. In a similar situation, he backed himself and produced one of the best innings of the past 50 years. Importantly, Stokes played that inning knowing that, succeed or fail, his team and leadership would have his back. That's the mindset that needs to be fostered in any great team."
In the Lord's second innings, Jadeja batted for almost three hours, with Bumrah and Siraj adding 35 and 23 runs, respectively, to the team's total, but that didn't turn out to be enough for India to win the match, and at the end, they suffered the loss by 22 runs.
Shubman Gill & Co. will now be focusing on the fourth Test, which will commence on July 23 at Old Trafford, Manchester.