Virender Sehwag has delivered a blunt assessment of Ravindra Jadeja’s role at Rajasthan Royals, arguing that his strike rate will not win matches. The comments came after RR lost heavily to Sunrisers Hyderabad by 57 runs.
The SRH defeat
Early wickets meant Jadeja walked in as early as the second over. The experienced left-hander hit back with 45 off 32 balls but could not stop the collapse. Sehwag dismissed such runs as non-impact runs, as they came in a losing cause and did not shape the result.
A top-heavy batting line-up
Sehwag said RR’s batting leans heavily on a few players at the top, naming Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Dhruv Jurel as the only consistent contributors so far. The rest, he said, have not stepped up when needed. He felt Jadeja’s batting style and scoring rate are not suited to winning games consistently under pressure.
The numbers
Jadeja has scored 118 runs in IPL 2026 at a strike rate of 118.75. His career strike rates at No. 6 and No. 7 are 131.65 and 124.27 respectively, which fit a stabiliser more than an explosive finisher.
Next up
RR now meet struggling Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens on April 19. With top-order inconsistency a concern, Sehwag stressed that someone in the middle order must step up if the team is to stay competitive this season.
