It has been a rollercoaster of a ride for all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja against Australia in the ongoing series. He has taken wickets and made runs but he will be most remembered for being needlessly run out at a crucial juncture of the 5th ODI at Hyderabad. Seen as the man who couldn’t give the finishing touch to a masterpiece by Sachin Tendulkar, Jadeja speaks about the highs, the lows and how he answered critics with his all-round show in Guwahati. Excerpts:

It’s been a series of ups and downs, what do you remember the most?

• My target before the series was to make the best use of every chance I got. The game where I scored a 50 was the most memorable for me. The team was in a bad situation and we had lost five early wickets. Though we lost the match, I was happy that I didn’t give in.

Your bowling too has been a revelation.

• I bowled well but wickets are important. In that sense, I am not too happy as I didn’t get too many wickets.

What about the two run outs?

• I was too aggressive in a couple of matches and tried to get a run where there was none. I learnt my lesson. I have decided not to be hasty ever again.

How did you deal with the criticism after the Hyderabad game?

• People said I was not mature enough for one-dayers, they wrote me off. I had to prove that I had the talent to play at international level and it was this motivation that saw me dig in with both bat and ball in the next game. People make mistakes, I was very disheartened when I got run out (in Hyderabad).

... contd.