ICC Champions Trophy: Dhoni has backed my abilities and I am happy to deliver, says Ravindra Jadeja

The only sign of discomfort in Ravindra Jadeja's 'performance' on Tuesday was answering questions in English. The International Cricket Council's 'mandatory' requirement left Jadeja in a 'spin' but he still managed to express himself.

"Hindi mein pucho na? (Why don't you ask questions in Hindi?)" Jadeja told Indian reporters, but since it's an ICC rule, he could ill afford to 'break' the rules. Like his bowling, the 24-year-old Jadeja did a pretty neat job.

Keeping things simple has helped my game, said Jadeja, who was the Man of the Match in Tuesday's ICC Champions Trophy group B match against the West Indies here. Jadeja finished with a career-best haul of five for 36 as India won by eight wickets to become the first team to qualify for the semifinals.

"This is my best bowling performance and I am very happy about it. I have had three four-wicket hauls, but this one is special," Jadeja said in a post-match chat with reporters at the Ken Barrington Cricket Center here at The Oval.

"I was just aiming to bowl the right line which I did. The Oval wicket was dry and affording spin and I wasn't surprised by the conditions even if it was overcast," Jadeja said.

Jadeja said he has worked on his game in the last six months and always tried to keep things simple. "Earlier I would strategize too much and get all mixed up. Now I just come for a game and adjust to the conditions and play my best," he said.

The Saurashtra all-rounder thanked his skipper for showing faith in his abilities. "Mahibhai (Mahi is Dhoni's nickname) is a very good thinking captain. He can read your abilities very well and I am happy I am doing the job for him," Jadeja said, adding with a smile: "I still can't figure out why he calls me, Sirji."

Jadeja said he wasn't scared that West Indies had big hitters in their ranks like Kieron Pollard and Chris Gayle. "It is always better to think what I can do and not worry about batsmen. I was able to bowl a straight forward line and the batsmen made the mistakes," Jadeja said, adding India's biggest plus was their fielding.

"All our fielders are very good. We don't have a single player whom we need to hide in the field. We have the correct balance in the team and that's the biggest advantage for us," Jadeja said.