Jalaj Saxena scored an unbeaten 58 and took four wickets in Kerala’s six-wicket win over Chhattisgarh in Delhi on Sunday.
Jalaj Saxena had a simple routine during his off-season. It included a brisk jog in the evening at Indore’s Holkar Stadium, followed by an intense 45-minute cardio session at the gym. Jalaj pursued this regimented schedule with dogged determination for close to four months. Maintaining such a regime helped him build his fitness and endurance levels because Jalaj was nearing 32, an age at which most cricketers tend to plateau in performance and fitness. But the Kerala all-rounder did not want to take it easy.
His efforts proved to be beneficial in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy. On Sunday at the Feroz Shah Kotla, Jalaj first accounted for four Chhattisgarh wickets, and followed it up with a composed unbeaten 58 to help Kerala through with nearly nine overs to spare. With seven scalps from three matches in this tournament so far, Jalaj believed he has just carried on the good work of last season.“I think the efforts I had put in my off-season have been rewarded. I have just continued from where I left off last season,” he explained.
It’s the tag of being the team’s premier all-rounder that has spurred Jalaj to put in the hard yards in the off-season. Since he shifted to Kerala from Madhya Pradesh two seasons ago, Jalaj has performed the dual role — that of an opener as well as their go-to off-spinner – with elan. He finished his debut season for Kerala with 272 runs at an average of 34, and picked 20 wickets. He had a breakthrough Ranji season last year, when he scored 522 runs at an average of 52 and prised out 44 scalps, which put him on top of the wicket-takers’ list. “Being the all-rounder in your team has its own challenges. Being the opener and the chief spinner means have to be on top of my fitness if I want to be a consistent performer,” Jalaj felt.
Despite achieving considerable success in first-class cricket in the last five years, Jalaj has been continually snubbed for India A tours in recent times. Ironically, when he last got a call-up to India A in 2013, he was nowhere close to being this consistent.
In the interim, he bagged several top BCCI awards. But the lack of India A tours meant doors to the senior team remained shut. Things finally turned a corner earlier this summer, when he was drafted in the squad against Australia A.
“I felt hard done by with the snub year after year. These things are not in my hands. But playing against Australia A was a boost for me,” he said. There was more good news in store for Jalaj last week, when he was named in the Board President’s XI squad for a two-day warm-up game against the visiting West Indies team in Vadodara.
All this is perhaps an indication that selectors have finally taken note of his exploits on the domestic circuit. This means coach Dave Whatmore’s team will not have his services for a couple of Vijay Hazare Trophy matches.
Looking back, Jalaj said the decision to shift to Kerala was one of the best professional decisions he has taken. “Two years ago, my career at MP had stagnated somewhat. I needed a smaller team where I could be their standout performer. So, when I got an opportunity to play for Kerala, I did not look back.” Under Whatmore, Jalaj is enjoying one of the best phases in his career. This year, a bevy of experienced domestic players are shifting bases to much smaller teams with the hope of rebooting their careers.
Whatmore’s role
Jalaj credits Whatmore for building unity and fostering team culture in the Kerala squad. “His role as a coach has been enormous. Bringing unity and team culture is not a small task. For an outsider to come and build a rapport in such a short span of time is incredible. He is a tremendous man manager,” he noted.
Like Whatmore, Jalaj too is an outsider in the Kerala dressing room. But breaking the ice didn’t take too long. “It’s been a great experience playing the last two seasons with these guys. They went out of their way to make me feel at home.”
Playing in Kerala presented its own unique challenges for Jalaj — like finding typical North Indian fare like roti, dal makhani and paneer ki sabzi. Thankfully, his team-mates chipped in. “In Kerala, food is a problem, especially since I am a vegetarian. But my team-mates located a restaurant in Thiruvanthapuram that serves north Indian food. I order my food every time I go there. Even though Kerala offers several authentic vegetarian joints, it didn’t suit me because I’m a dal-roti person,” he said.
Jalaj may not be a fan of authentic Kerala cuisine, but he didn’t miss an opportunity to soak in some of the sight and sounds of the state whenever he got an opportunity. “Last year, in between tournaments, I went to the backwaters of Alappuzha last year, and was truly amazed by the landscape and natural beauty,” he quipped. However, if there’s one thing he hopes to pick up in his third year with the Kerala team, it’s Malayalam. “I have tried to pick up a bit, but it’s really difficult to grasp,” he concluded.
Brief scores: Chhattisgarh 138 in 39.5 overs (A Khare 36*; J Saxena 4/31, A Chandran 3/13) lost to Kerala 133/4 in 40 overs (J Saxena 58*, D Ferrario 33).