Ravindra Jadeja was named a Wisden Cricketer of the Year for 2025. R Kaushik’s piece on Jadeja originally appeared in the 2026 edition of Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack.
The Five Cricketers of the Year represent a tradition that dates back to 1889, making this the oldest individual award in cricket. The Five are picked by the editor, and the selection is based, primarily but not exclusively, on excellence in and/or influence on the previous English season. No one can be chosen more than once.
India’s Test series in England in 2025 was their fourth there in 12 summers, and the only player to figure in them all was Ravindra Jadeja. In the absence of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, and now led by Shubman Gill, India needed Jadeja to put his hand up. And if his left-arm spin was less effective than usual, his batting was crucial to a memorable 2-2 draw. Making the most of his familiarity with the conditions, he shepherded a young group with a commanding performance, topping the averages with 516 runs at 86, including five half-centuries (two unbeaten) and a match-saving 107 not out in the fourth Test in Manchester.
“I have been going to England since 2009, but this time, as a batter, it was important to work out what I can do best for the team,” he says. “I’d try to implement my plans in the nets, and repeat them in the matches. It is not easy to bat in English conditions. Some strokes that you can play in India, you can’t with assurance in England. Your shot selection must be spot on; you should be aware of what to play, and what to leave alone. If you programme your mind along these lines, it becomes almost second nature out in the middle.”
It was only after the final game of the 2018 series at The Oval that Jadeja started to believe in himself as a Test batter. An unbeaten 86 from No.8 in the first innings triggered a golden period that compelled successive team managements to push him up the order. In his next Test innings, he produced a maiden hundred, against West Indies at his home ground of Rajkot. Between that Oval Test and the one at the end of the 2025 series, Jadeja’s batting average was 43, mainly from No.6 or 7, and sometimes running out of partners.
He might even have inspired India to a series victory last summer. In the third Test at Lord’s, he made twin half-centuries, including a painstaking 61 not out in the fourth innings, but he couldn’t take them over the line, despite crucial stands for the last three wickets with Nitish Kumar Reddy, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj. From 82-7 chasing 193, India fell only 23 short. Should he have been more aggressive? “Sometimes, a small mistake can lead to a negative result,” he says. “But you also learn a lot from defeats like that – such as how to keep calm, how to handle pressure.”
At Old Trafford, with India seemingly certain to go 3-1 down, Jadeja survived a chance to Joe Root in the slips first ball to fashion a series-saving stand of 203 with Washington Sundar, marked by India’s desire to allow both batsmen to complete centuries after Ben Stokes had offered a draw. “We could have lost that Test, so in that sense it was a win,” he says. “It also meant we would draw the series if we won at The Oval, which was a huge achievement for a young side.” They did precisely that.
RAVINDRASINH ANIRUDHSINH JADEJA was born on December 6, 1988, in Navagam-Khed, a municipality in the Jamnagar district of Gujarat, to a Rajput family, from what is historically known as a warrior community. Rajput means “son of a king”, and the genesis of Jadeja’s signature swordsman celebration, in which he twirls his bat in elaborate fashion, lies in his roots: “I can’t bring a sword to the ground, so I use the bat as a sword to acknowledge a milestone.” Jadeja’s father, Anirudh, was a watchman for a private security agency, and wanted his son to become an officer in the Indian army. But Ravindra was bitten by the cricket bug from an early age.
Saurashtra, one of three Gujarati teams playing representative domestic cricket, had yet to establish themselves as a powerhouse, but that didn’t stop Jadeja from making rapid strides at junior level. His performances, largely with the ball, earned a place in the India Under-19 squad at 16. Despite his three wickets, India lost the World Cup final to Pakistan in 2006. But two years later, as deputy to Kohli, he masterminded his team’s charge to the title with ten wickets at an average of 13.
By then, he had played first-class cricket, for Saurashtra in the Ranji Trophy and West Zone in the Duleep. Then, between November 2011 and December 2012, his batting went up a notch, with three first-class triple-centuries. He was not yet 24. Reward came in the form of a Test call-up against England at Nagpur in 2012/13, when he dismissed Kevin Pietersen twice and Jonathan Trott. Initially, Jadeja operated in the shadow of Ravichandran Ashwin, before his metronomic accuracy, growing prowess with the bat and electric fielding compelled MS Dhoni and Kohli to use him as the lone specialist spinner in Tests outside the subcontinent. It also helped that he was among the world’s most competitive cricketers. At home, meanwhile, India’s focus turned to producing pitches to help him and Ashwin, though the conditions still required skilful bowling. By the end of 2025, his Test record at home was sensational: 256 wickets at a shade under 21.
It was as a batsman that he learned to adapt. “When you bat higher up the order, you can take your time,” he says. “Once you are set, you look at the ball and react. In England, the Dukes ball swings and seams all day long. It helps if you play late, and close to the body. I was relaxed mentally. England is one of those places where you never feel settled: it’s always challenging for the batters. If you make runs there, your confidence shoots up. Sometimes, it is not necessary to score a century – what matters is impactful performances for the team, and I take pride in the fact that I did so in a very important series.”
Jadeja is 37, but still among the fittest in the Indian set-up, and can comfortably outsprint men a decade younger. Astonishingly, he shows no sign of slowing down.
Follow Wisden for all cricket updates, including live scores, match stats, quizzes and more. Stay up to date with the latest cricket news, player updates, team standings, match highlights, video analysis and live match odds.
