Undaunted Unadkat unleashed

Jaydev Unadkat is an inspirational leader. His message to his team-mates on the eve of the 2019-20 Ranji Trophy final enhanced his aura in the Saurashtra team. Nervous energy, fear of failure and desperation are natural for a team that’s faltered not once, but thrice in the title clash of India’s premier domestic tournament.

Unadkat, who has breathed the air of such battles before, told his players to embrace the moment. “Before the final, I told the boys that there is no pressure to win it,” begins Unadkat in an exclusive chat with DH.

“I didn’t want them to keep worrying about ‘what if we lose another final’. I assured them that it is fine if we end up runners-up again and nobody will take the credit away for what we have done throughout the campaign. I think it helped us ease our fears,” he says.

Spurred by their captain’s words, Saurashtra took to the field and wrapped up a consistent campaign with the all-important win against Bengal. The maiden Ranji triumph was an emotional moment for the left-arm pacer who was named Saurashtra’s captain last season.

“It was bound to happen,” feels Unadkat. “It’s the first time that the State has won the Ranji Trophy. There were many in Saurashtra cricket who hoped for the maiden title and I am proud that it happened in my tenure,” he says.

A captain who performs is a great asset to the team. One need not look beyond his sensational efforts in the semifinal and final to understand how leadership brings the best in Unadkat. In a final where only first innings lead mattered, Bengal needed 72 on the last day while Saurashtra had four wickets to knock off.

Bengal were clinging to the thin hope that two set batsmen in Anustup Majumdar and Arnab Nandi will give them the decisive lead. But a fired-up Unadkat trapped Majumdar plumb in front first and then showed great presence of mind by dismissing next batsman Akash Deep with a direct hit.

Courtesy their skipper, Saurashtra overcame a similar hurdle in the semifinal against Gujarat. On the final day, captain Parthiv Patel (93) and Chirag Gandhi (96) appeared to pull off the improbable target of 327 until a lion-hearted Unadkat removed both and finished with a seven-wicket haul.

“You find ways if you are hungry enough to take wickets. Operating with the old ball is slightly more difficult because it requires motivation and you need to put physical pressure on yourself. Ball by ball, you need to bend your back, especially on wickets that don’t help you,” explains Unadkat, who has 327 first class wickets in 89 games.

Numbers don’t excite the pacer but from 39 wickets in the last season to 67 this time, it is a drastic turnaround. With good pace, persistence and variety, he carved through the opposition batting. From someone who triggers collapses upfront, he turned into a complete bowler, striking at any point of the contest.

“I'm in a good space and that shows in my bowling. I bowled more than one good spell in each game and that’s why I enjoyed a great season. Look, I have seen absolute highs and some remarkable lows. So it’s all about using that experience to good effect. I am a deep thinker and I have clear thoughts on how to go about my career now,” claims Unadkat, who last played for India in a T20I in March two years ago.

If history has taught anything, it is to not doubt Saurashtra’s ability to go the distance. After the title, they have certainly changed the way how teams look at them. “I used to endorse right from the beginning of my career that it’s not about the big teams. Guys are coming out from every corner of the country. I would still say we are not the best team skill-wise, but we are the best in playing as a unit. We believed if we come together, we can do it,” he says.

It's this collective belief and the captain’s unceasing hunger that took Saurashtra to the summit.