India vs Australia: Ravindra Jadeja is more than three cricketers rolled into one

Ravindra Jadeja celebrates an Australian wicket on Day Three of the Nagpur Test on Saturday

Watching Ravindra Jadeja go through the grind at the VCA Stadium in the first Test against Australia, it was hard to comprehend that he had played a solitary game in the five months since last September, when he sustained a non-cricketing knee injury in the Asia Cup in the UAE.

Did it all in Nagpur

Jadeja did everything that was required of him, the engine room during India's charge to an innings victory inside three days. On Day One, he sent down 22 excellent overs of left-arm spin to pick up five for 47, on days Two and Three combined, he batted for four hours in making a vital 70 and on the third evening, he finished with two for 34 from 12 overs to complement R Ashwin's demolition act.

There was no other contestant for the Player of the Match award, given the volume of stellar work Jadeja had stacked up. If there is a more vital cog in the Indian Test match wheel currently, that person has done a wonderful job of making himself invisible.

A complete package

Jadeja is more than three cricketers rolled in one. Apart from holding his own as a left-arm spinner and as a proper left-handed middle-order bat, Jadeja is worth his place in the XI solely on the back of his fielding, electric always and game-changing occasionally. The pace at which he completes his overs gives his skipper the luxury of time, a massive plus in this age of instant cricketing penalisation in the 20-over game. As far as the search for complete packages go, it must end with the 34-year-old from Navagam-Khed in Saurashtra.

Once dismissed as a bowler who relied heavily on inputs, if not instructions, from Mahendra Singh Dhoni behind the stumps, Jadeja has evolved into a cunning, unrelenting purveyor of his craft. He may not have the versatility of Ashwin, but he has huge reserves of street-smarts and an inherent ability to outwit batsmen that he can dig into, with devastating effect.

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Of all cricketers with more than 2,000 runs and 200 wickets since 2010, the difference between Jadeja's batting average and his bowling average is the highest, at 12.7. Ashwin is next best at 3.3 and Stuart Broad's difference is -9.38, installing the left-hander as statistically the best all-rounder of his generation. The untimely knee injury which forced him to miss the T20 World Cup reignited his fire, and he has already channelised that constructively. Australia have been served notice - if Ashwin don't get you, Jadeja will.

Impressive numbers

With 249 wickets from 61 Tests, Jadeja is India's eighth leading wicket-taker, the legendary Bishan Bedi now only 17 scalps ahead. If Australia prevent Jadeja from emulating his illustrious left-arm spinning elder over the next three Tests, they would have done exceptionally well.