Ravindra Jadeja was all praise for Virat Kohli after the former India captain took a stunning one-handed catch off his bowling in the first ODI against West Indies on Thursday. After conceding 20 runs in his first two overs, Jadeja made a strong comeback to dismiss Shimron Hetmyer and Romario Shepherd in quick succession. Jadeja cleaned up Hetmyer before Kohli's stunner saw him get his second wicket of the match. Kohli showed excellent reflexes as he dived towards his right to pluck the ball at second slip.
In a recent interaction with Kuldeep Yadav on BCCI.tv, Jadeja, who is regarded as one of the best fielders in the world, said it was actually nice to see someone take a good catch of his own bowling.
"Acha lagta hai ki main logon ki bowling pe main catch pakata hun, to meri bowling pe bhi koi itna accha catch pakda hai (Every time I take good catches off other people's bowling, it was great to see someone take a great catch off my bowling for once). It was a great catch by Virat, it kept low and he had to be sharp. He barely had any time to react, so it was a good take. If the bowler has the fielder's support on these types of pitches, then their confidence is really boosted," said the all-rounder.
Kuldeep and Jadeja masterminded the rout of an abject West Indies team as India romped to a five-wicket victory with more than 27 overs to spare in the series opener.
West Indies were brushed aside for just 114 off 23 overs after being put in as they appeared completely at sea in trying to cope especially with variations offered by Yadav's wrist-spin.
India were always on course for the modest target thanks to Ishan Kishan's belligerent 52, although the loss of three wickets near the end of the chase took some of the gloss off the win.
(With AFP Inputs)