Indian spinner Ravindra Jadeja, who thrashed New Zealand batsmen with his five-for, said it was Kane Williamson’s wicket by Ashwin in the morning session which proved to be a game-changer for India.
Ravi Ashwin bowled well as he removed the Kiwi Captain and reduced New Zealand from 152-1 to 238-5 by lunch on day 3 of the first Test at Green Park.
“We knew that it is Kane who can really bat for long in their line-up. The plan was to get him out. We know others can’t bat for long hours. We got four wickets in the morning session and that was game-changing,” Jadeja said at a press conference at the end of day’s play.
Asked to speak about the ball that got Williamson out, Jadeja said, “It was a good ball. It came through the bat and pad. It was a fantastic ball.”
Jadeja also said he received lot of ideas from the former spinner and the coach Anil Kumble before the match starts.
“He asked me to bowl in rough areas and look for angles and bowling from wide off the crease. There were a lot of footmarks around the off stump area. He told me that those marks will have a bearing on the minds of the batsmen,” he said.
“There is not much that we changed. We knew we have to get one wicket and two-three can fall immediately after that. They were trying to play shots and we knew they will make one or other mistake. We bowled from outside off stump, built pressure and executed our plans well,” he said.
Six of the New Zealand batsmen got LBW decisions today.
“I have been playing on these pitches for the last so many years. Since my Under-14, Under 16, Under 19 days, I have played on similar pitches, same conditions. We have also played on underprepared pitches so that gives you experience,” he said.