CT Champions Trophy Flashback: When Ravindra Jadeja won the Golden Ball in 2013

The 2013 edition of the ICC Champions Trophy belonged to India as they became the champion of champions remaining undefeated. They were literally invincible as they won all the 5 matches in the tournament quite comprehensively. South Africa, West Indies and Sri Lanka were defeated in the group stage and they got the better of Sri Lanka in the semi-final to set up the summit clash with the hosts England. Only England came close to winning but they too were defeated at the end. One of the reasons why India did so well was the terrific bowling of Ravindra Jadeja.

He picked up 12 wickets in 5 matches at an average of 12.83. His economy rate was a meager 3.76 and he struck after every 20.5 balls on an average. The left-arm spinner bowled with accuracy and the best part of his performances was that he picked up wickets in England where the conditions are not conducive to spin. It turned out to be the event after which Jadeja established himself in the Indian squad across all formats.

As the next edition of Champions Trophy is just around the corner, let’s recall the heroics of Ravindra Jadeja from the previous championship:

A thorn in South Africa’s path

India played the first match of the tournament against South Africa in Cardiff and made 331/7 batting first. Shikhar Dhawan scored a magnificent 114 off just 94 balls and added 127 runs for the first wicket alongside Rohit Sharma. Jadeja batted at number 7 and played a superb cameo of 47 off only 29 balls with 7 fours and a six to propel the team to a big score.

He then followed it up with wonderful figures of 31/2 in 9 overs and was the most economical Indian bowler by far. He bagged the important wicket of JP Duminy which inflicted a collapse in the Proteas as they bundled out to 305 handing India a victory by 26 runs.

A knockout punch against West Indies

In the next game, India met West Indies at the Kennington Oval in London. India won the toss and opted to field first and the decision paid rich dividends from the outset. Chris Gayle departed in the 5th over but Johnson Charles and Darren Bravo put together 78 runs for the second wicket. In the 20th over, they took the total to 103/1 but just then, Jadeja delivered the decisive blow.

He trapped Charles in front of the wickets that opened the floodgates of the Carribean line-up. One after the other, the batsmen went back to the pavilion as Jadeja bagged 4 more wickets to end with figures of 36/5 in 10 overs with 2 maidens. Dhawan struck his second century on the trot as India cruised past the target of 234 with 8 wickets in hand.

Defeated the neighbors

The last league match for India was against the arch-rivals – Pakistan, at Edgbaston, Birmingham. Pakistan batted first and were dismissed for just 165 in 39.4 overs. Jadeja finished with figures of 30/2 in 8 overs and accounted for the crucial wickets of Misbah-ul-Haq and Shoaib Malik. India comfortably chased down the total in just 19.1 overs.

India reached the semi-final where they met the other neighbor – Sri Lanka. Once again, India opted to bowl first and restricted a strong batting line-up to just 181/8 in 50 overs. It was a complete bowling performance from India as every frontline bowler chipped in with wickets. Jadeja too played his part and picked up the wicket of Mahela Jayawardene and went for just 30 runs in 10 overs. The half-centuries from Dhawan and Virat Kohli helped India achieve the target in just 35 overs with 8 wickets in hand.

Brought India the glory

India made it to the final where they were set to clash against the hosts England but rain played spoilsport and didn’t let the match start for long. The crowd at Edgbaston waited and finally, they were rewarded for their patience as the match begun having curtailed to 20 overs a side. India were rocked back early as Rohit was sent back in the 4th over. Dhawan and Kohli stuck around for a while but after their dismissals, the team lost wickets in heaps. There was no momentum and India seemed like falling short of a decent target.

Jadeja walked in at the crease in the 14th over after the fall of MS Dhoni. The score read 66/5 and they were in danger of missing out on the title after dominating in the previous stages of the tournament. Jadeja provided the much-needed momentum with a cameo of 33 off 25 balls that included 2 fours and 2 sixes that took the side to a respectable 129/7 at the end of 20 overs.

It wasn’t a big total but considering the kind of form of the Indian bowlers thus far in the tournament, it wasn’t going to be easy for England. As it turned out, the bowlers stood up and didn’t let the English batsmen construct a partnership initially. 3 wickets fell inside 8 overs and Jadeja removed Ian Bell in the 9th over to put them further into trouble. Eoin Morgan and Ravi Bopara added 64 runs for the 5th wicket and brought England back into the chase. But both fell to Ishant Sharma in the 18th over.

Jadeja came in to bowl the penultimate over of the innings and claimed the prized scalp of the dangerous Jos Buttler for a duck. It was the final nail in the coffin as the batsmen that followed succumbed to pressure. India won the match by 5 runs as Jadeja played the instrumental role with figures of 24/2 in 4 overs. He was adjudged the Man of the Match as well as won the Golden Ball for being the leading wicket-taker in the tournament.