Veteran India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja shared an untold story of his India call-up before the upcoming England tour. Team India will play five T20Is and three ODIs in England starting Wednesday, July 1, as well. However, Ravindra Jadeja made his India debut in the fifth ODI of the Sri Lanka tour in 2009. He shared how he learned of the possibility of his selection a day before the team was officially announced as well. He got several calls from unknown numbers, which were from the media, to congratulate him. It was then that he found that his name was doing the rounds. Jadeja also shared the incident and how he could not sleep the entire night, knowing that he could be in the India team as well.
“I was just out with my friend and a day before the team as announced, I got six to seven calls from unknown numbers. I picked the calls and it was all from the media. They were congratulating me. I asked why? Because I had no idea. Then they told me that the team for the Sri Lanka series will be announced and you may be picked. I became nervous and told them that they are joking. But they told me my name was doing the rounds. I could not sleep that night. Then the headlines came that there is a new face in the team for Sri Lanka – Ravindra Jadeja. That was special for me,” he said during a conversation on SGTV.
“I went to the trial for the India U19 for the first time when I was 17 and a half. There were about 150 kids and I was shocked that how would they pick 15 from so many. I was so nervous and used to think how I would prove myself among so many kids. We played a practice match one-day and I scored a fifty, that is when I thought I could play at this level. The journey started from there,” he again stated.
READ HERE: Shubman Gill Breaks Silence On ODI Futures Of Rohit Sharma And Virat Kohli
“In February 2006 there was the U19 World Cup and I was selected. I thought that it was a special thing and at that time, it was like if you do well in the U19, your chances of being picked for the Indian team are bright. When my Ranji season went well in 2008, I scored some 750 runs and took 40-45 wickets. I used to keep track of all U19 tournaments but I had no idea that the Indian team was also thinking about me,” he shared again.
However, Ravindra Jadeja also recalled his experience after joining the Indian team for the very first time. He named several veteran players and shared how he felt numb on seeing them at such a young age.
“Sachin, Sehwag, Gambhir, Yuvraj, Habhajan, Dhoni, Raina, Zaheer, Yusuf, Irfan, all were there. I went into the dressing room and was thinking about what was happening to me. If I had played that very day, I would not have been able to lift the bat as well. These were all big players. I had just completed 19 years of age. I did not tell anyone what I was thinking or feeling. I was numb and watching everyone. All of them were very senior to me. Now people already play with each other in the IPL, so it is a bit easier. You will never get a dressing room like that again,” Ravindra Jadeja concluded.
