India vs West Indies: Kohli was forced to play Jadeja in the XI, reckons Ajit Agarkar

With injuries keeping some players aside and selectors giving rest to some others, the Indian side had an intricate situation when it came to choosing the playing XI against the Windies. Former cricketer Ajit Agarkar reckons that the current squad condition had forced Virat Kohli to drop Kuldeep Yadav and go for Ravindra Jadeja in the XI.

With the likes of Hardik Pandya and Kedar Jadhav out of the squad, the Indian captain had no other all-round option but Jadeja for this game. Since Guwahati provided a flat deck for the first ODI, he had to play three fast bowlers, which meant Kuldeep was the unfortunate guy to not make it to the XI.

Analysing this situation, Agarkar mentioned that India needed three spinners at any cost and he reckons it was a good call to play Jadeja over Kuldeep. The 40-year-old said while talking on ESPNCricinfo that the 29-year-old might go with three spinners in the future when there’s more assistance for the spinners.

“The current situation of the side forced Kohli to play Jadeja over Kuldeep Yadav. If the pitch had more assistance for the spinners, they would’ve gone for three spinners. It looks like a good batting track and hence, India needed three seamers in the XI,” Agarkar said.

Jadeja is the only proper all-rounder in the side: Agarkar

In the ODI squad announced by BCCI, the Saurashtra all-rounder was the only individual who could bat and bowl equally well. Agarkar also pointed out that the team had far too many specialized batsmen and bowlers, which left Kohli out of options.

“If Jadeja doesn’t play well, then he might to consider the other alternatives and think about a different setup. There are far too many specialized batsmen and bowlers in the squad right now and Jadeja seems to be the only person who can do a bit of both. That is what might have forced the captain to opt for him in the XI,” Agarkar added.

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