A breakdown of Ravindra Jadeja's IPL 2022 journey; relinquishing captaincy the right call
"Once you become the captain, you have to take care of many things and that also includes your own game."
As one of the finest leaders our game has ever seen, MS Dhoni was not mincing his words after imploring Ravindra Jadeja's decision to relinquish the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captaincy for IPL 2022.
Jadeja has endured a horrid run of form in the ongoing edition, especially with the bat, with Chennai announcing the decision was designed for him to concentrate more on his own game.
Jadeja to handover CSK captaincy back to MS Dhoni:Ravindra Jadeja has decided to relinquish captaincy to focus and concentrate more on his game & has requested MS Dhoni to lead CSK. MS Dhoni has accepted to lead CSK in the larger interest & to allow Jadeja to focus on his game.
Breakdown of Jadeja's individual form as captain in IPL 2022
1st match vs Kolkata Knight Riders (6-wicket loss)
Jadeja finished with an unbeaten 26 off 28 balls, only hitting one boundary. A 70-run partnership alongside Dhoni, however, did help his side reach a respectable 131 from 61/5.
He bowled four overs, conceding 25 runs and going wicketless.
2nd match vs Lucknow Super Giants (6-wicket loss)
With the bat, he managed 17 runs off nine balls and hit three fours to propel his side to a big total of 210. But he again failed to pick up a wicket, conceding 21 runs in just two overs.
3rd match vs Punjab Kings (54-run loss)
He fell for a three-ball duck but took the crucial wicket of Liam Livingstone in the first innings, which significantly curtailed the opposition's charge.
4th match vs Sunrisers Hyderabad (8-wicket loss)
A 15-ball 23 runs (strike rate of 153) from Jadeja helped his side to a total of 154. But it was no match for the Sunrisers, who chased it down with more than two overs to spare.
Bowling-wise, his three overs cost 21 runs (no wickets), with only one boundary scored off his bowling.
5th match vs Royal Challengers Bangalore (23-run victory)
He finally had some sort of figure that would trouble the highlights reel, with a super three-wicket haul that included the likes of Glenn Maxwell as his side registered their first win of the season.
However, he was out for a golden duck. Some leeway will be thrown his way as he only had one over to bat, and was trying to better a team total already approaching the 200-run mark.
Ravindra Jadeja has decided to relinquish the captaincy to focus and concentrate more on his game.
MS Dhoni has accepted to lead CSK in the larger interest and to allow Jadeja to focus on his game 💛
#MSDhoni #Jadeja #WhistlePodu @msdhoni @imjadeja https://t.co/edQnIqlFhZ
6th match vs Gujarat Titans (3-wicket loss)
A solid 22 off 12 from Jadeja helped his side post 169/5. He then came on to bowl and was very solid, returning with figures of 25/3 from three overs.
7th match vs Mumbai Indians (3-wicket victory)
Bowling first, his four overs yielded 30 runs for no wickets as the Mumbai batters easily dealt with him. A secondary failure with the bat (three runs off eight balls) meant this was arguably his worst performance of the tournament.
8th match vs Punjab Kings (11-run loss)
A gallant 21 from 16 balls from Jadeja was not quite enough in Chennai's run chase of 188. He hit a six in the last over, but the winning equation was too difficult by that stage (27 required off six balls).
He bowled two overs for just 18 runs, an impressive display as he troubled the well-set batters during the middle overs.
While Jadeja's form with the ball has been relatively sound and around his career averages, he has definitely been underpar on the batting front after being handed the captaincy role.
So far this tournament, he has averaged 22.4 from a total of 112 runs scored, which is well below average of 57.3 and strike rate of 157 from the past two seasons combined.
Legendary keeper-batter Dhoni will once over take over the captaincy. The veteran threw his arms around Jadeja by outlining how challenging the post can be and said:
"Once you become captain, it means a lot of demands come in. But it affected his mind as the tasks grew. I think captaincy burdened his prep and performances. So it was a gradual transition. Spoon-feeding doesn't really help the captain, on the field you have to take those crucial decisions and you have to take responsibility for those decisions."
If one is to believe the reasons for relinquishing the captaincy are as simple as rediscovering personal form, it appears to be a very sage decision for Jadeja given the statistics.
In Chennai's only game so far with Jadeja not as captain, he has finished one not out with the bat. He bowled three overs for just 15 runs, one of his best economy rates.
The Super Kings are also just clinging on to their final chances as they sit second-last on the ladder.
A rejuvenated Ravindra Jadeja, with the support of the cricketing fraternity, could be all they need.