 "Five times when cricketer Ravindra Jadeja found himself in a controversy")
Ravindra Jadeja has been controversy’s favourite child in Indian cricket. His recent comments on Kapil Dev’s remarks have once again put him in the limelight for reasons he would not like. However, this is not the first time that the left-handed all-rounder has courted controversy.
Bits and pieces player and verbal diarrhoea: The Jadeja- Manjrekar spat
It was during the 2019 ODI World Cup when former India cricketer and renowned TV commentator Sanjay Manjrekar called Ravindra Jadeja a ‘bits and pieces’ cricketer during India’s match against England.
“I am not a big fan of bits and pieces players which Jadeja is at this point of his career in 50-over cricket. In Test matches, he is a pure bowler. But in 50-over cricket, I would rather have a batsman and a spinner,” Manjrekar had said on commentary.
This led to a scathing tweet from the Indian spinner in which he compared his career to that of Manjrekar and called his commentary verbal diarrhoea.
Deleting, posting and liking tweets: The Jadeja- CSK fissure
Jadeja, one of the best players that the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have had over the years, has not had cordial relationships with the franchise ever since his captaincy departure. Jadeja, then 33, was appointed captain of the yellow brigade after MS Dhoni stepped down from his position just a few days ahead of the start of the new IPL season in 2022.
However, Jadeja was made to step down after his team could win only two games out of the first eight. He did not take any further part in the tournament as his captaincy departure coincided with a hip injury.
Having replied, “10 more to go” to a CSK tweet mentioning his 12 scintillating years with the franchise, Jadeja deleted his reply and removed all social media posts relating to the 2021 and 2022 seasons with the franchise.
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In the 2023 season, Jadeja did well with bat and ball but was miffed with the Chennai crowd shouting ‘Dhoni…Dhoni’ after the fall of his wicket.
If all this was not enough, Jadeja would go on to target the CSK fans with a tweet of his at the end of the first qualifier too.
Jadeja hits Raina below the belt
Back then a youngster, Jadeja got furious with his Chennai Super Kings teammate Suresh Raina during an international fixture. On the tour of the West Indies in 2013, Raina dropped two catches off Jadeja’s bowling in a match against hosts West Indies. Allegedly, Jadeja told Raina that the latter had lost his interest in fielding after losing the captaincy opportunity.
Raina used to be the go-to captain for India when MS Dhoni would be unavailable due to injury or other engagements. However, during this tri-series involving the hosts, India and Sri Lanka, Virat Kohli was named as the replacement for Dhoni in a match against the hosts. India eventually won the match by 102 runs and Jadeja took two wickets in it.
Searching for backdoor entry, Jadeja banned for one-year in IPL
Jadeja, who is now an IPL icon with 2692 runs and 152 wickets, in 226 matches, once tried to make a deal with another franchise while playing for Rajasthan Royals (RR) while keeping the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and his team in the dark. It was before the start of the 2010 season of the richest cricket league when two new teams Kochi Tuskers Kerala (KTK) and Pune Warriors India (PWI) were introduced.
BCCI got to know of the wrongdoings and banned the all-rounder for the entire 2010 season. However, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise for the Saurashtra man as he was not retained by RR and fetched the highest bid in the 2012 auction for Rs 9.8 crore.
Jadeja’s comments on Kapil Dev
The latest controversy for ‘Sir Jadeja’ relates to Indian cricket legend Kapil Dev. Kapil had criticised the current crop of Indian cricketers for not seeking help from seniors like Sunil Gavaskar. He also said that they think they know too much.
A reporter asked Jadeja to react to this comment from Kapil. Replying to it, the man with 520 international wickets said, “I don't know when he has said this. I don't search these things on social media.”
“See… everyone has their own opinion. Former players have full right to share their opinions, but I don't think there is any arrogance in this team," added the 34-year-old.
Jadeja even went to defend his teammates, saying, "Everyone is enjoying their cricket and everyone is hardworking. No one has taken anything for granted.
They are giving their 100 per cent. Such comments generally come when the Indian team loses a match. This is a good bunch of boys, this is a good group. We are representing India and that is our main aim, there is no personal agenda.”