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Jadeja’s 10 overs in Thiruvananthapuram cost 54 runs without a wicket as West Indies reached 135/0 inside the first 20 overs before Kuldeep Yadav changed the game. Justin Greaves and John Campbell handled him comfortably, and at no stage did Jadeja look close to breaking the partnership.

That outing extended a striking run. In his last 10 ODIs, Jadeja has taken five wickets – four in the first three matches in that sequence, against New Zealand and Australia in the Champions Trophy in March 2025. He has taken one wicket in his last seven ODIs. In the last three ODIs before the West Indies game, he took 0/56, 0/44 and 0/41 and, in each case, failed to bowl his full 10 overs. In three of the seven games, he shipped in more than six runs an overs. The least he conceded was in the Thiruvananthapuram game (5.4).

There has been little to suggest that he could barge through the selectors door for the World Cup. Jadeja is no longer an automatic choice in India’s ODI setup either. Axar Patel and Washington Sundar have moved ahead of him. He has returned because both are away at the Asian Games. The other options, Harsh Dubey and Shahbaz Ahmed, were injured too. He remains as agile on the field as he always had been, but has not been making any significant impact with the bat. In a top-heavy batting line-up, he cannot wield the long hand at No 7 or further down. He has not scored a half-century in nearly six years, and has struggled to accelerate at the death.

Circumstances, rather than a strong run of performances, only charted his comeback.

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Still relevant?

But the team management still sees value in what Jadeja offers. Before the second ODI, spin bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule described him as a utility player who can contribute with both bat and ball, while pointing to an improvement in his bowling over the last six months.

“I think for me he has always been a utility player. He is somebody who can contribute with the bat as well as with the ball.

“He has just definitely improved as a bowler over the last six months. I thought the Test matches he bowled really well in Sri Lanka, as well as now with the one-dayers; it is just the first game but after a long period, but he has done well.

In his last 10 ODIs, Jadeja has taken five wickets – four in the first three matches in that sequence, against New Zealand and Australia in the Champions Trophy in March 2025. (CREIMAS)

“With Axar also being around, as the tournaments or as the series which we play in the coming time, we will be able to assess whose performances or who can be of utility.

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“But Jaddu, with his batting skills, the experience he gets in, is definitely doing well, and I am sure he will be looked into in the coming time.”

That is the other side of Jadeja’s case. India still value his experience, his batting and his ability to contribute in more than one discipline. But with Axar and Washington ahead of him, those qualities alone may not be enough to secure his place in the ODI XI.

Axar has increasingly become India’s preferred left-arm spin-bowling all-rounder, while Washington offers another option with the ball. With the 2027 ODI World Cup approaching, India have time to settle their combination, but they also have reason to look at alternatives.

There is little room for sentiment here. Jadeja’s experience can keep him in the wider group, but selection eventually comes down to performances. His recent ODI numbers have not made that case compelling.

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With only two games before Axar and Washington return, Jadeja has a short window to make himself relevant again. The second ODI is therefore less about replacing anyone and more about showing that he can still offer India something that the other options cannot.

Jadeja’s real challenge isn’t that he’s losing out in a tough selection fight – it’s that there hasn’t really been a fight at all. He’s back in the team mainly because of timing and injuries, not because he has forced his way in. What he manages to do, starting with Wednesday’s ODI in Guwahati, will determine whether he strengthens his case to stay in the ODI picture when India’s usual picks are back. For now, the door is open, but Jadeja hasn’t done enough to make a strong case for keeping it open.