Former India batting coach Sanjay Bangar has expressed that the Eden Gardens pitch perfectly suits Ravindra Jadeja’s bowling style, which contributed to his lethal performance on Day 2 of the Test match against South Africa.

According to Bangar, all Jadeja needed to do was consistently land the ball at a particular length, and the pitch took care of the rest. Spinners dominated Day 2 of the first Test between India and South Africa at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Saturday, November 15.

Resuming their first innings at 37-1, Team India were eventually bowled out for 189 runs. At stumps, South Africa were struggling at 93-7 in their second innings. Off-spinner Simon Harmer claimed impressive figures of 4-30 for the Proteas, while Ravindra Jadeja picked up 4-29 from his 13 overs.

During a discussion on ESPNcricinfo, Bangar praised Jadeja for yet another impressive display with the ball. He also noted that the surface at Eden Gardens made the spinner’s job much easier.

“He’s got his stock ball sorted and he doesn’t really have too many variations. You rarely see him bowl the arm ball. It’s just ball in, ball out, over after over. Bowl the same way on a particular length. That has been classic Jadeja for a number of years,” Bangar said.

“When pitches offer so much turn and variable bounce, then it is quite an easy thing for Jadeja to pick up those wickets. The best thing a spinner can do is master his stock ball. You do not need any other delivery to pick up a lot of wickets,” he added.

While Jadeja went wicketless in India’s first innings, he was instrumental in South Africa’s second innings by dismissing key batsmen Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Tony de Zorzi, and Tristan Stubbs.

### Ravindra Jadeja Joins Legends in Elite List

On Day 2 of the Kolkata Test, Jadeja also etched his name in cricketing history by becoming only the fourth all-rounder to complete the double of 4,000 runs and 300 wickets in Test cricket. Before him, only Kapil Dev, Ian Botham, and Daniel Vettori have achieved this remarkable feat.

The left-handed batter reached this milestone by scoring his 10th run in India’s first innings. Looking at the Saurashtra cricketer’s Test career stats after Day 2, the 36-year-old has amassed 4,017 runs at an average of 38.62 and claimed 342 wickets at an impressive average of 25.04.
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