Days after backing wife over ‘meaningless interview’ row, Ravindra Jadeja dedicates Rajkot Test award to Rivaba

Days after Ravindra Jadeja’s father pointed fingers at the cricketer’s wife for a rift in their family.

The Indian all-rounder dedicated his Player of the Match Award to his partner, saying she keeps him motivated by providing him with mental support. Jadeja’s comments came after the all-rounder shone in India’s 434-run win over England in the third of an ongoing 5-Test series between India and England in Rajkot.

The hometown hero became only the second Indian player after R Ashwin to hit a hundred and pick up a 5-wicket haul in a Test match. Jadeja was adjudged the Player of the Match for his crucial first innings hundred and a 5-wicket haul in the 2nd innings of the Test which was played in front of his home crowd. Yashasvi Jaiswal hit a double hundred, Rohit Sharma chipped in with a captain’s knock in the first innings, but the jury picked Jadeja for the Player of the Match honour because of his multidimensional contribution to the team.

“It is a special feeling to take a 5-wicket haul in the second innings. And that too, a hundred and a 5-wicket haul in the same Test is special,” Jadeja said in a video shared by the Indian cricket board (BCCI) on Monday.

“This is a special Man of the Match at my home ground. I would like to dedicate this award to my wife. She has been working hard behind the scenes, mentally. She always gives me confidence,” he added.

Notably, Rivaba Jadeja, who is also a Bharatiya Janata Party MLA from Gujarat, had lashed out at a reporter for bringing up the personal issue during a public event earlier in the month.

It all started when Ravindra Jadeja’s father, Anirudhsinh said the relationship between him and his son strained within months of the cricketer’s marriage to his wife Rivaba in 2016.

Jadeja, in a strongly-worded response on social media, refuted the claims, saying his father’s interview to a daily was ‘nonsensical’.

“The things mentioned in the dubious interview to Divya Bhaskar are meaningless and false. Those are one-sided comments that I deny them. The attempt to tarnish the image of my wife is improper and condemnable. I too have a lot to say but it is better that I don’t reveal those things in public,” Jadeja had said.

In Rajkot, India handed England their biggest defeat since World War II as the tourists succumbed under pressure in the final innings. After missing out on an opportunity to take a first innings lead, England fell behind and were set a target of 557 runs in the final innings. However, England managed just 122 runs as Jadeja finished with figures of 5 for 41.