Ajay Jadeja refused to take money for serving as Afghanistan's team mentor

New Delhi,UPDATED: Jun 15, 2024 00:18 IST

Former India batter Ajay Jadeja, who served as a team mentor in Afghanistan's amazing run of victories over cricketing heavyweights in last year's ODI World Cup, has refused to accept payment for his services, according to Naseeb Khan, chief executive officer of the country's cricket body. The main official of the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) stated that they "insisted multiple times" but Jadeja declined each time. "We insisted multiple times but Jadeja refused to take any money from the Afghanistan Cricket Board for his services during the 2023 ODI World Cup. His response was, 'If you play well, that's all the money and reward I need'," Khan was quoted as saying by Ariana News.

Hired shortly before the start of the ICC competition in India, Jadeja was a member of the think tank when Afghanistan defeated Pakistan, England, and a formidable Bangladesh until Glenn Maxwell's incredible double century destroyed their dreams of qualifying for the semifinals. Jadeja, 53, has played 196 One-Day Internationals for India, scoring 5359 runs at 37.47 with six hundred and thirty fifties. He also played 15 Tests for India between 1992 and 2000, amassing 576 runs at 26.18, with four half-centuries and the best of 96. At the time, head coach Jonathan Trott believed that Afghanistan's crucial performance in the tournament, which helped them shake off the ' minnows' label, had a lot to do with Jadeja's hiring as a mentor.

Jadeja has given insight on Afghanistan's dressing room attitude following their triumph over Pakistan in last year's ODI World Cup in India. In an interview with former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif, Jadeja, who guided the Afghan team during the ICC World Cup 2023, said that matches between Pakistan and Afghanistan were more intense than those between India and Pakistan.

"In the 50-over World Cup held in India, I closely observed the Afghan team. After their victory over Pakistan, the dressing room was in a celebratory mood, almost as if everyone was drunk without drinking," said Jadeja. "Many people asked me how it felt after the match. I explained that if there's a tenfold rivalry in Pakistan-India matches, it’s a hundredfold in Pakistan-Afghanistan games," he added.