Jadeja cleared to appear in Test for Nagpur opener

Jadeja last turned out for India in August 2022 in the Asia Cup in Dubai. There a knee injury required surgical treatment, ruling him out of the team for five months. He missed the T20 World Cup in Australia and although he was originally named to return for the tour of Bangladesh, he was withdrawn.

All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja has been cleared by the National Cricket Academy to participate in the series-opening Nagpur Test against Australia. A fitness report on his readiness to participate was issued by the NCA on 1 February, paving the way for him to join the rest of the squad in Nagpur.

While Jadeja’s return clearly boosts India’s chances in Nagpur, the hosts are set to start the series without their middle-order batsman Shreyas Iyer.

Ravindra Jadeja, 34, returned to the competitive side last week in a Ranji Trophy game against Tamil Nadu. He bowled 41.1 overs in that game and played in the second innings in preparation for the Test match workload.

Iyer was ruled out of the New Zealand series with a back injury and immediately reported to the NCA to be fit before the start of the Australia Tests. While those monitoring Iyer’s fitness status have not yet clearly ruled him out of the Nagpur game, he will remain at the NCA in Bengaluru and is on schedule to appear for the second Test starting February 17 in Delhi. Will work