“I, at the moment, don’t know who runs this cricket team” – Ajay Jadeja ahead of IND vs SL ODI series

Former India player Ajay Jadeja has questioned the team's leadership ahead of the ODI series against Sri Lanka. He feels that the Board of Control for Cricket in India should formally announce the captain and vice-captain for ODI and T20I formats ahead of the 2023 50-over World Cup.

The veteran lashed out at the selection committee’s idea of appointing different captains for white ball series in the past. Speaking on Cricbuzz, Jadeja said:

“I, at the moment, don’t know who runs this cricket team. See, there has to be one king, one leader, captain or coach or selector or some authority, whoever it is. There are so many kings. What does the Praja (followers) do? Which king do they listen to?”

The statement came after Hardik Pandya replaced under-fire KL Rahul as Rohit Sharma’s deputy in ODIs.

In Sharma's absence, Rishabh Pant (against South Africa) and Hardik Pandya (against Ireland and New Zealand) led in T20Is. Similarly, Shikhar Dhawan (against West Indies, South Africa and NZ), and KL Rahul (in SA and Zimbabwe) led the ODI teams last year.

In 2023, Pandya led the T20I series against Sri Lanka, which India won 2-1. The BCCI is yet to announce him as a full-time T20I captain.

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“What happens to KL Rahul? We’ll have to wait and watch” – Ajay Jadeja

With KL Rahul no longer being the vice-captain and Ishan Kishan’s double century in the last ODI, Jadeja feels there's doubt about his place in the playing XI.

He said:

“The poor fellow was leading the Test match team three weeks ago. He was vice-captain last year in the World Cup. The team that has been picked for the One Dayer. He's not the vice-captain anymore. It must be tough on KL Rahul. What happens to KL Rahul? We’ll have to wait and watch. KL Rahul anyway was batting at four.”

Jadeja, though, reckons Rahul should keep his head high and perform like a champion player in the ODIs against the Islanders.

“You, as a player, should not go down, in fact, get enhanced. You, as a champion player, are probably more important than leading (the team).”

For the uninitiated, Rahul registered 73, 14 and 8 in the last ODI series in Bangladesh. The right-hander also had a below-par outing in the two Tests, managing 57 runs in four innings.

The 30-year-old was dropped from T20Is after scoring 128 runs in six games at the 2022 T20 World Cup, with single-digit scores against Pakistan, South Africa and England.

Rohit Sharma and Co. will begin the three-game ODI series against Sri Lanka in Guwahati on Tuesday (January 10).