After India’s win in the third T20I against New Zealand, former player Ajay Jadeja has lauded Arshdeep Singh for bowling an impressive spell. He pointed out that the left-arm seamer didn’t have a great outing in the first T20I but bounced back well in the second and third games.
Arshdeep registered figures of 1/33 in four overs as India restricted New Zealand to 198/3 in Wellington on Tuesday, October 27. The visitors then achieved the target with six wickets and 40 balls to spare, taking a 3-0 lead in the five-match series.
During a discussion on Sony Sports, Jadeja praised Arshdeep for learning from the first game and predominantly bowling awaygoing deliveries to the New Zealand openers in the second and third T20I.
“I think he is a quick learner as well, although he has played 100 matches. Even if you look at this series, the first match wasn’t that good. He was bringing the ball in, and it was suiting them (the New Zealand openers). In the previous match and in this match, he kept all balls outside the off-stump,” he said.
The former India captain pointed out that the 27-year-old’s quick thinking didn’t allow Finn Allen and Tim Seifert to play freely, with the latter also falling prey while trying to hit across the line in the third T20I.
“Both openers kept waiting, and the ball went up in the air when they tried to hit on the leg side. One got out as well, and the other survived. His thinking about the game is very quick. He has the skill in any case,” Jadeja observed.
Jadeja added that Arshdeep showed that he isn’t stubborn and can adjust his bowling according to the batters’ strengths and weaknesses.
“Many times, a guy thinks that his skill is to bring the ball in only, and even if he knows that the batter has difficulty against awaygoing deliveries, he would bring the ball in only. Some people become stubborn. You have to accept at times that it is probably not your top skill, but it would create more problems for the opposition guy. We saw with him that he kept taking the ball away,” he elaborated.
Arshdeep Singh had Tim Seifert caught at point by Axar Patel for a six-ball two after the Kiwi opener skied an attempted hoick towards the leg side. The Punjab Kings (PBKS) bowler had dismissed the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) opener similarly in the second game as well, with Tilak Varma taking the catch on that occasion.
“Arshdeep Singh is probably the bowling leader” – Ajay Jadeja lauds India’s seam attack after NZ vs IND 2026 3rd T20I
In the same discussion, Ajay Jadeja praised the Indian seamers for bowling to a plan in the last four overs of the New Zealand innings, with Arshdeep Singh potentially leading the pack.
“An over apiece all four fast bowlers bowled in the end showed the consistency and the belief. One thing is visible in this team. They are at least moving in one direction. You will lose at times, but you are seeing what they are trying to do, and Arshdeep Singh is probably the bowling leader in that. The bowling unit is doing that, and the same is being seen in batting,” he said.
The former India all-rounder added that Shreyas Iyer and Gautam Gambhir have got the team they were looking for.
“It becomes easy for a team at times when there aren’t too many elderly people in the team. The captain is young. So everyone moves in that direction. That’s why you always need a young team. Now the coach and the captain have a team where there is no opposition in the team to how they want to play, which is a good thing for a team. It seems like the transition is over now,” Jadeja observed.
New Zealand seemed headed to a massive total after posting 100/2 in the first 10 overs. However, they managed only 98 runs in the second half of their innings and just 42 runs in the last four overs despite having seven wickets in hand.
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Edited by Kartik Iyer
