Jaydev Unadkat has enjoyed an excellent start to life on the south coast.
Recruited by head coach Paul Farbrace, the Indian pacer has snagged 10 wickets in first his two Sussex appearances, including a pinpoint six-wicket haul in last week’s nail-biting win against Leicestershire.
With the visiting Foxes just 46 runs away from what would have been the third-highest chase in County Championship history, Unadkat showed his class. He took their remaining four poles in a blistering spell.
His final figures of 6 for 94 from 32.4 overs represented a herculean effort. Battling through an ankle injury, the 31-year-old held a consistent length to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
After play closed, he said: “Nothing mattered at the end when the team needed those crucial breakthroughs.
“It wasn’t just about bowling at the stumps. It was about being patient and sticking to good lengths, nice hard lengths, not in the slot. When the batter knew I was going to bash that length, I went nice and full. That’s what got us the breakthrough.”
The win on Wednesday ensured that Sussex still have a shot at promotion although they’ll have to win their remaining two fixtures and rely on other results going their way to escape the second division.
Unadkat said: “An outside chance is still a chance. What matters is how you play each and every game that comes your way. If everything goes our way, these two wins could get us promotion. If it doesn’t, two wins will be a great boost for the side.”
Despite some good batting, Sussex have struggled for wickets all season, drawing their previous eight County Championship fixtures due to a lack of bowling firepower.
Unadkat, though, was determined to defend his young colleagues, saying: “There’s a lot of talent in the room. Yes, there’s not a lot of experience, but that will come. With the coaching staff that they’ve got, they’re on the right track.
“It’s always exciting to be a part of a young team where guys are very keen to learn about the game – to listen to each other and to learn about the game in general.”
In Unadkat, Sussex have a seasoned first-class professional, an experienced pro who knows all about the challenges that come with being a young bowler.
At only 19, a fresh-faced Unadkat announced himself with a stellar performance at the 2010 U19 World Cup. Untamed and unpolished, the seamer’s test debut came only a month later against a star-studded South Africa side at Centurion.
Sadly for the seamer, his cold open was far from plain sailing. Spanked around, the left-armer went wicketless as the likes of Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers and Jacque Kallis piled on the runs.
The latter notched a brutal double ton to take the hosts past 600 and ensure a crushing innings victory.
While he wasn’t the only bowler to go around the park, Unadkat’s conveyor belt of loose deliveries caught the eye. Public opinion on the paceman shifted, the consensus being that, despite his talent, the youngster was simply too raw for test cricket.
The tag stuck. So much so that, despite a decade of consistency in first-class cricket, Unadkat would have to wait 12 years before his second crack at test cricket.
Last December, a staggering 4,389 days, three captains and 118 tests after his debut, Jaydev Unadkat finally won his second test cap and, with it, took his first wicket – against Bangladesh in Mirpur.
He said at the time: “I went blank when I took that wicket. I’d visualised the moment a thousand times. People talked about me getting another opportunity to play for India. Personally, I always believed I’d do so. I was just thankful that everything clicked for me during this journey.”
As of today, the left-armer has three test wickets at an average of 77.00 from his four appearances. It’s international experience that he’s had to call upon, bowling on a docile Hove wicket.
“I’d heard from Cheteshwar (Pujara) that the square in Hove is quite flat, so I knew I’d have to grind and get those overs in to get wickets. The conditions are a bit different from what you’d expect in England. It’s good to be in these conditions rather than hearing about it.
“I’ve enjoyed my time bowling here. It’s obviously a lot of new learning, playing with a different group of people at different times in different venues and in different conditions.”
Off the pitch, Unadkat has settled in well to life on the south coast, saying: “I’ve been absolutely enjoying it. I’m here with my wife and she’s been loving it too. We’ve got a flat close to the ground and it’s completely different to what we have back in India.”
Unadkat and his Sussex team-mates are next in action on Tuesday (17 September) away to Derbyshire in a potentially promotion-deciding clash. While it will be his last game of this season, the Gujarat-born bowler is open to a return to Hove in the coming years.
He added: “I was always keen to get a county stint at some point in my career. I wanted to explore this side of the game. A lot of players rate English county cricket right up there in terms of professionalism.
“At this time in my career, I’ll be really looking forward to whatever stint I can get in the future.”
