India's star pacer Jaydev Unadkat made a stunning comeback to Test cricket after 12 years and snared his maiden wicket in the longest format on Thursday (December 22). In the second Test against Bangladesh in Mirpur, the 31-year-old Unadkat, who was wicketless to date since his debut back in 2010, removed Zakir Hasan with a ripper of delivery in the 15th over to put a halt to his wicket drought in Tests.
His next wicket was that of Mushfiqur Rahim, as the Indians bundled their opponents for just 227 runs. After his performance with the red ball, Unadkat was ecstatic about his performance and said, "I had visualised this moment maybe a thousand times, in between when I played my first Test and now. I didn't get a wicket back then and that was the talk every time people talked about me when I got the opportunity to play for the Indian team again," Unadkat said in the video published by BCCI.
Saurashtra skipper Unadkat replaced Kuldeep Yadav in India's playing XI in the second Test against Bangladesh, who took a five-wicket haul in the first outing a few days back. Bangladesh won the toss and opted to bat first and got off to a good start until Unadkat sent Zakir packing at the score of 15. Zakir struck a brilliant century in the first Test against India.
Despite performing exceptionally well in the domestic circuit, Unadkat couldn't make it to India's fold and was constantly snubbed by the Indian selectors. Claiming his first Test wicket was an emotional moment for the star pacer, who missed 118 matches, between his first and second appearances in the longest format of the game, which is the second-highest by any Indian player in world cricket.
"I actually miss playing with the red ball and honestly it was not just about getting the Test recall it was also about getting to play the Ranji Trophy again. Thank you to everyone who has believed in me throughout this journey, especially my family and friends who are watching back home and my wife, who somehow believed that I will get a Test recall more than myself. Thank you to all of them, really really really grateful," Unadkat concluded.
