Aggressive Jackson thrives against the best

Sheldon Jackson, by his own admission, is a very aggressive person — with the bat and without it. The outspoken Saurashtra stroke-maker, who constantly fights for animal rights, has hardly shied away from speaking his mind or giving it back to the opposition whenever there has been a high-pitched battle. While it has been his identity that has shaped a successful career, it has, at times, weighed him down too.

Karnataka, having been at the receiving end of Jackson's dominance on a host of occasions, opted to rattle him with an aggressive approach in a no-holds-barred Ranji Trophy semifinal at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Friday. Not only did the in-form pacers bowl with a lot of venom, they and close-in fielders hurled plenty of words too at him and batting partner Arpit Vasavada. Appeals were relentless, pressure was constant and the ball was doing something constantly. It was high-quality first-class cricket where no quarter was given none taken.

Karnataka were preying on Jackson’s mind and composure. They knew if they can get him out early, they can turn the screw into Saurashtra line-up. Having endured an ordinary season so far, Jackson though didn’t fall prey. He did choose to combat aggression with aggression but instead of responding with words, he let his bat do all the talking and to telling effect. Playing some scintillating shots from the word go, Jackson hammered a brilliant 245-ball 160 and forged a 232-run fourth-wicket stand with Vasavada to put Saurashtra in position of strength at stumps on the third day.

“Normally I’m a very aggressive person to be honest,” said the 36-year-old. “But I never got big runs this season, I kept getting starts and getting out. I had to cut out everything, even my natural instincts. Normally when someone tells me something, I go back at them. I just tried to focus on the bowler and on what they were bowling and not on what they were saying.

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“I knew if I can do it, only I can get myself out on this wicket. That was my only focus. When I came in, the team score was 40 while Karnataka had scored 407. If they were coming at me and I went after them and got out, I would be the one to lose and the team would be the one to lose. That’s what they wanted and I didn’t allow it.”

Jackson, who ended up scoring his fourth first-class ton against Karnataka, said he always relishes a fight with Karnataka because they bring out the best in him. “I feel Karnataka is a very aggressive side when it comes to bowling. They come at you, trying to get you out but they even give you an opportunity to score runs. Attacking is their strength and that’s mine as well. I guess that's what clicked for me.

"They were doing everything in their power to win the game and so are we doing. This a very important match — the semifinals of the Ranji Trophy. They are going to come at you with the ball, with their mouth and I think that’s why it’s called Test cricket (first-class actually). They will test you, get into your mind and disturb you. They were trying their best, we were trying our best to let it go. They are going to do everything in their power and I did everything in my power to stop them. Glad it worked today.”