Shastri also said if Jadeja will be fit, he will play in the next Test match.
India's Ravindra Jadeja celebrates. (Photo: AFP)
Spin wizard Ravichandran Ashwin and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja are under an injury cloud ahead of the third Test match between India and Australia.
Speaking to media ahead of the Boxing Day test, India coach Ravi Shastri said Ashwin was still recovering from an abdominal strain that caused him to miss the second test in Perth. Shastri also shed light on the exclusion of Jadeja from second Test match in Perth that India lost by 146 runs.
With the Perth win, the Oz team have levelled the four-match Test series 1-1. The third Test match will be played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground starting 27th December.
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“The problem with Jaddu (Jadeja) is that he had taken an injection four days into coming to Australia, because of some stiffness in the shoulder and it took a while for that injection to settle down,” Shastri said.
Shastri also said if Jadeja will be fit, he will play in the next Test match.
“So when you look at Perth, we felt that he was maybe 60-70 percent fit and that we didn’t want to risk that in Perth. If he was 80 percent fit here (MCG), he will play.”
Ravi Shastri also said Ashwin need to be evaluated over the next 48 hours. Ashwin’s injury, however, can open the doors for chinaman spinner Kuldeep Yadav.
Meanwhile, seam bowling all-rounder Hardik Pandya, who was ruled out from the first two Test due to an injury sustained during the Asia Cup, has joined the squad.
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