Maharashtra’s Dheeraj Jadhav has ended all speculations and declared his loyalty to Indian Cricket League (ICL). The Pune-based opening batsman on Saturday inked a three-year contract with the rebel league.Although thrilled by the deal, the 27-year-old said it had been a tough decision for him. “It was not easy to say ‘no’ to Maharashtra after playing for a decade at various levels,” he told The Indian Express on Sunday.Jadhav joins his statemate and international discards S Sriram and S Ramesh, apart from UP’ pace spearhead, left-armer Shalabh Srivastava, former Delhi captain Mithun Manhas, besides seven Hyderabad players, who are part of the ICL bandwagon.Despite scoring 387 runs in six matches last season, Jadhav failed to make the cut in the Ranji one-day team. He also failed to earn a berth for the Deodhar and Challenger Trophy series. Denying that the move had anything to do with the lucrative offer, Jadhav said he just wanted to play the game. “I am unsure of my place in Maharashtra team, so the ICL deal was my best bet,” he said.Jadhav, however, denied having been approached earlier despite being linked with the league over the last couple of months. “I was playing for Air India in a tournament organised by the Karnataka State Cricket Association in Bangalore last week. That’s when some ICL officials approached me,” he said. “After giving it a thought, I accepted the offer. The formalities were completed in Mumbai last week. I will be attached with the ICL for three years.”Jadhav’s name went missing from Maharashtra’s probables list for the 2007-08 season after being linked with the ICL. The southpaw, who started off as a middle-order bat, then evolved into an opener. He was prolific in the 2003-04 domestic season when he scored three double hundreds, including an unconquered 251 that elevated Maharashtra into the Elite Group forcing the national selectors to give him a look-in. “I reckon the 251 not out in the Plate Group final against Madhya Pradesh would be my best knock till date,” he said.Jadhav was then selected for the 2004 home series against Australia. Although he didn’t make it to the playing XI, his talent was on show in Kenya during the India ‘A’ tour, when he cracked 260. Once again he found himself in Team India jumper for the 2005 tour of Zimbabwe, which is remembered more for the Sourav Ganguly-Greg Chappell spat.
