Is this the end of Ravindra Jadeja in ODI cricket?

Ravindra Jadeja is currently regarded as one of the most experienced & finest all-rounders in world cricket. He now plays only two formats. He retired from T20Is after winning the T20 World Cup 2024. His skills are unquestionable. He has led India to many victories across all three formats, but he has struggled in the ODIs over the past few years. His last ODI half-century was in Canberra in 2020, and his most recent at home was in Kochi in 2013. While he continues to contribute regularly with his bowling and fielding, his form has declined, raising doubts about his chances in the upcoming ODI series. 

In the recent ODI series against New Zealand, Jadeja scored only 43 runs in three matches and did not take any wickets. During the South Africa series, he took just 1 wicket and gave away 157 runs in 25 overs. With the bat, he scored 56 runs in 2 innings. Additionally, his fielding no longer looks as sharp as before. 

The current ODI squad also features senior all-rounders like Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel, who are currently rested for the T20 World Cup but are expected to rejoin the ODI team afterwards. Moreover, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Harshit Rana have also made impressive recent performances. Washington Sundar is also in contention. 

As a result, fierce competition exists for all-rounder spots in the ODI World Cup squad. It will be intriguing to see who secures the ticket. Ahead of them, a heated contest among these all-rounders will determine the selection. The World Cup will be held in South Africa, where conditions favour fast bowlers. Therefore, it’s unlikely that the Indian team will opt for two spin all-rounders.

Jadeja will need to regain his previous form to earn his spot in the upcoming cricket matches of the ODIs and also the Cricket World Cup 2027; otherwise, it’s possible he could soon lose his place in the ODI setup. He remains a strong player in Test cricket, consistently scoring runs, but in ODIs, he must return to his former level. Last year, he scored 27 runs in 3 matches and took 5 wickets in 5 matches, with an impressive economy rate of 4.35. 

Well, former Indian cricketers Ajinkya Rahane and Zaheer Khan are supporting Jadeja, despite his poor form. They criticised Shubman Gill’s captaincy. According to Rahane, Jadeja came to bowling very late in the 3rd ODI.  

"Personally, I think Shubman missed a trick by bowling only three overs of Kuldeep in the middle overs, and then he was waiting till the 37th-38th over. Even Jadeja being held back till the 30th over, those are the guys who can get you the wickets. That is where India went slightly wrong," Rahane said.

On the other hand, World Cup winner Zaheer Khan supported Rahane’s words. He said that Jadeja should’ve been brought into the attack much earlier.

"More than Kuldeep, it is Ravindra Jadeja's inclusion in the bowling attack very late that was the problem. Maybe the thought was to give Nitish Reddy a bit more game time and overs under his belt in a match situation, but because of that, you get a bit hamstrung with your options," Zaheer added.