New Delhi. Former Indian all-rounder Ajay Jadeja has denied taking any amount for his services as a mentor in Afghanistan during the ICC ODI World Cup 2023. This information was given by Naseeb Khan, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the country’s cricket board. Jadeja joined the Afghanistan team as a mentor before the World Cup in India. In this World Cup, apart from former champions England and Pakistan, Afghanistan also defeated Bangladesh.
However, Australia’s Glenn Maxwell smashed the team’s dream of reaching the semi-finals by scoring a double century. A top Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) official said he had ‘pushed for this several times’ but each time Jadeja rejected his proposal. “We requested several times but Jadeja refused to take any money from the Afghanistan Cricket Board for his services during the ODI World Cup,” Khan told ‘Aryan News’.
According to Khan, Jadeja said, ‘If you play well, it’s money and reward for me.’ Jadeja has scored 5359 runs for India in 196 ODI matches at an average of 37.47. The 53-year-old former player has six centuries and 30 fifties to his name. He has scored 576 runs at an average of 26.18 in 15 Tests for the country. His highest score in Tests is 96 runs. During the World Cup, the team’s head coach Jonathan Trott also believed that with Jadeja’s appointment, the team had left behind the ‘weak team’ tag, apart from doing well in the tournament.
First published: June 15, 2024, 10:41 IST