EXCLUSIVE: Jaydev Unadkat Credits Jasprit Bumrah And Mohammed Shami For His India Comeback

By Harit N Joshi

Never say never! Jaydev Unadkat is literally living by this mantra. After all, the lanky left-arm pacer is experiencing the “best” phase of his cricketing sojourn.

It all started with the Vijay Hazare Trophy title —- a first for Saurashtra when they beat Maharashtra in the final of the 50-over competition on December 2.

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A few days later, Unadkat was called as an injury replacement for Mohammed Shami for the two Tests against Bangladesh. He made it to the XI and claimed three wickets in the game as India won by three wickets to clinch the series. It was after 12 years that Unadkat was playing another Test match after his wicketless debut against South Africa at Centurion in 2010.

A week after returning from Mirpur, Unadkat rocked the Delhi line-up with a record hat-trick in the first over to finish with 8-39 in the first innings as Saurashtra clinched their Ranji Trophy match by an innings and 214 runs.

Released from the Indian Test squad for the Ranji Trophy final against Bengal, Unadkat led Saurashtra to their second title in three years after a nine-wicket haul (3-44 and 6-85) in the summit clash.

The triumph culminated with his recall to the ODI team after 10 years (he last played an ODI in 2013 v West Indies).

“It (the selection news) was like an icing on the cake. We had just won the Ranji trophy and the news of my selection in the ODI squad came around that time. The focus is on the Test series (v Australia) for now…be ready to contribute in whichever way I can and then take it forward from there,” Unadkat told CricketCountry in an exclusive interview.

Unadkat finished the Ranji Trophy season with 26 wickets from four games. The left-arm pacer topped the bowling charts in the Vijay Hazare Trophy with 19 wickets from 10 games. In the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20, Unadkat finished with nine wickets as Saurashtra lost to eventual champions Mumbai in the quarter-final.

“I have been bowling well with the white ball in the domestic season and it is coming out nicely off the hands. So, hopefully I will try to carry forward the overall bowling form into the ODI series as well. I am really happy with the chance that I got and with the way things are going in my career,” Unadkat says.

Whether this is the best phase of his career? “Yes, for sure,” he says emphatically. “First the Vijay Hazare Trophy title happened. Then the Test call-up and then the record hat-trick. Winning the Ranji Trophy championship for the second time and then the ODI call-up, it is certainly the best phase of my career in that sense.”

When Unadkat walked into the Indian dressing room at Mirpur, he had just one very familiar face from the first time he arrived there — current head coach Rahul Dravid, who was his teammate then.

“He was the first person to congratulate me and told me that this opportunity was well deserved. I have done a lot of things right to be in that dressing room. There was a comfort level already with him. It wasn’t that I was talking to a stranger. It was very special when he told me that I was playing the Mirpur Test. It couldn’t have come from a better person,” says Unadkat.

Although Unadkat was playing a Test after over a decade, it wasn’t a new set up for him. “It wasn’t like that [feeling of a debutant]. There were goosebumps and nerves for sure, but back then when I played, the excitement was like any newcomer would have. This time, I felt confident. I was visualising this moment many times. It was a second debut for me considering the gap between two Tests,” he says.

With the Indian pace department experiencing a renaissance moment where they are spoilt for choices, Unadkat’s comeback is a classic example of perseverance. India’s overseas success in recent times has largely been due to its pace department. It is no longer a one-man army.

In January 2022, Unadkat’s social media post,”Dear red ball, please give me one more chance.. I’ll make you proud, promise!’ went viral. It was construed to be in context over his non-selection for the national team. Unadkat, however, clarifies: “It was not of frustration or over any non-selection matter. It was in lieu of two Ranji seasons not happening [due to COVID-19]. I was missing red-ball cricket. At 31, a two-year break was a huge setback for my career.”

The only way other pace bowlers outside the group would have got a look in would have been an injury or through workload management. Shami’s injury opened the door for Unadkat. “People have told me that my story is one of the examples of perseverance of which I am proud of. I have been enjoying every game be it for Saurashtra or the IPL teams that I have played for. It was not about waiting for this one chance…it was about enjoying the journey. Playing just one match for Saurashtra gives me a lot of excitement like any other game. It’s the same I feel in every game I play,” he says.

The likes of Jasprit Bumrah and Shami have been an inspiration for Unadkat to keep pushing and get better. “One thing I decided during the journey that I will not wait for any specific opportunity. I was playing Ranji Trophy and the IPL. It was about getting better and going through the grind. That was enough motivation for me. Every game was a motivation. Playing for the national team was at the back of my mind. Actually, I was inspired by the way Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami were performing. I was looking at them on how they were winning matches for India. They inspired me and made me work harder as I wanted to be there and do that too. And to be there, I knew I had to get better,” he says.

The other massive reason that Unadkat wanted to break into the Indian team again was his wife Rinny. “Before COVID, I met my wife Rinny. She had that strong belief that I will get another opportunity to play for India. When I made my debut in 2010 and also when I played limited-overs cricket for India in 2018, she was not in my life. So, I wanted to do it for her more than anyone else. That was an added motivation to do better,” he says with a smile.

In a World Cup year Unadkat’s selection in the ODI team against Australia comes with a lot of bright prospects and possibilities for him. He, however, wants to take it just “one thing at a time and let the process take its course.”