That Pulsar didn't stay in the family for long. One afternoon Lata had a kitchen accident. Ravindra's friends from Cricket Bunglow took turns to be by their side while she struggled in the hospital. She succumbed to burns a week later. Ravindra was 15 or 16 at the time.
The Pulsar was considered manhoos [inauspicious] and sold off. Ravindra was selected for a National Cricket Academy camp, however, and at 17 he was picked for the 2006 U-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka, which he played alongside Rohit Sharma and Cheteshwar Pujara.
During an incredibly tough period for the family, Naina, a nurse herself now, became Jadeja's mother and friend.
"I was 21-22 then," Naina remembers. "I had just taken my nursing exam and was waiting for the results. I didn't even know what you did in a bank. How to write a cheque. How to deposit money.
"I know many players who would have invited you to their room for tea or other drinks to get a good article written about themselves. I don't need it"
"This was also the time when Ravindra's game was picking up. His friends used to tell us he plays well, but we didn't know how well. He himself didn't play for a few days. He struggled to get over the loss. Twelve days after her death we got the news he had been selected in the U-19 team."
In Hindu families, the 10th to 13th days after a person's death are significant. On these days the family of the deceased performs rituals that mark the end of a self-imposed social isolation; they are the first attempts to return to normal life. On the third of these days, Ravindra was sent back to normal life. "As they say," says Naina, "When he [God] takes away something, he gives something in return."
Jadeja might not have demanded things of his parents, but he had a taste for bling. It helped that the IPL came around at the right time. At the first nets session for Rajasthan Royals, in 2008, Jadeja - sunglasses and sunscreen on, long hair, collar up - saw everybody get up and greet a white dude. When the man approached him, Jadeja just nodded from where he was sitting.
"Look, we have a rock star amidst us," the man said.
Jadeja had no idea the man was Shane Warne. The name stuck, as Jadeja proved himself to be a bit of a rock star to Warne. Years later, smoking a cigarette while watching Jadeja turn around a Test match at Lord's, Warne would say, "I know he loves strife. Loves a challenge." When Jadeja was selected for the World T20 in England in 2009, life was to change again.
