India, Jan. 13 -- Ravindra Jadeja did not have to grind it out on an optional pre-match training day on Tuesday, but he did. This was Rajkot after all, a place he calls home on the domestic circuit and where he is familiar with every blade of grass.

Long after the stands were empty, deep into the evening with floodlights beaming over the playing area, Jadeja practiced his bat swing, went through a power-hitting net session. This after having rolled his arm over for over an hour, until he was convinced he had found his landing area. With only the faithful super fans present, waving the tricolour in tandem, Jadeja was determined to persevere.

Other than Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, the spin allrounder is among the old hands in the Indian...