Can 'all-rounder' Jadhav nail a spot in the middle-order before World Cup?

Kedar Jadhav's part-time spin might be his ticket to next year's World Cup in England but the 33-year-old Indian batsman admits he is reluctant to work too hard on improving as a bowler.

Then captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni first persuaded the unorthodox middle-order batsman to roll his arm over in an one-day international against New Zealand in 2016 and he picked up two wickets for six runs in three overs.

On Wednesday, Jadhav returned his best ODI bowling figures of 3-23 in the Asia Cup clash in Dubai, his nine overs of off-spin snuffing out Pakistan's hopes of a competitive total.

With openers and regular captain Virat Kohli occupying the top three spots and wicket-keeper Dhoni a floating option in the batting order, a number of players have auditioned for the middle order over the last couple of years.

Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik and Jadhav himself have all had a crack but none has managed to nail down a spot.

Barring the virtuoso Raina, though, only Jadhav can offer a contribution with the ball to go along with his batting.

Jadhav has scored two centuries and three half centuries in 42 ODIs.

His unique slingshot action makes it difficult for batsmen to pick and with his subtle change of pace and trajectory, the Maharashtra cricketer has proved a useful option for the captain.

Against Pakistan on Wednesday, stand-in skipper Rohit Sharma would have been worried when all-rounder Hardik Pandya left the field on a stretcher due to a back injury in his fifth over but Jadhav stepped in and did a stellar job.

"My bowling is all about trying to read the batsman, my plan is to bowl stump to stump," Jadhav added.