Former Indian batter Mohammad Kaif said Ravindra Jadeja will not lead the Rajasthan Royals in the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League. Jadeja moved to RR after he was traded along with Sam Curran from Chennai Super Kings for Sanju Samson.
The all-rounder had also led Chennai Super Kings in the past but could not deliver as a leader. Jadeja has been traded in for INR 14 crore by the Rajasthan Royals.
Kaif highlighted that the inaugural champions have been grooming Riyan Parag, and they are likely to back the Assamese batter as the new skipper. Parag had led Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2025 when Sanju Samson was ruled out with an injury.
Mohammad Kaif said on his YouTube Channel, “Ravindra Jadeja will not become captain. The reason is they have been grooming Riyan Parag and invested a lot on him. Parag had replaced Samson as captain for a few matches due to the former’s injury. He is still learning the trade but Kumar Sangakkara is there and knows Parag for a lot of time now. When Jadeja was in Royals at the very start, Sangakkara was not there.”
“So, it takes time to build that rapport. But he has been working with Parag for 4-5 years now. Due to that bonding, Manoj Badale might have said even if Dravid is leaving, Sangakkara and Parag have a good tuning. Badale knows the team can’t progress if they don’t have a good relationship. He has been with the team since 2008,” he added.
Kaif said backing Parag as captain ahead of Jadeja will make more sense as the former has been associated with the team since 2019.
“Rajasthan Royals are known to not spend a lot of money, that’s how their planning was in the auction. But they spent all their money in the last two auctions. The Royals now have a mindset of spending money to make the team stronger. I feel Riyan Parag is higher than Jadeja in the pecking order. It would be the right call too because Jadeja hasn’t been part of the side for a long time now.”
“So, he wouldn’t be aware of their strategies. Whatever Samson will have to go through in CSK, Jadeja will be experiencing it too. He will have to spend two months with the team, work with Parag, Sangakkara and the management. I don’t think they will make Jadeja captain over Parag,” Kaif added.
The IPL 2026 mini auction is likely to be scheduled on December 15.
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