South African fast bowler Kagiso Rabada has come under the scanner after Gujarat Titans' defeat at the hands of Punjab Kings in their opening match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 in Mullanpur.
Rabada has experienced a notable dip in form in the recent IPL season, which is a stark contrast to his dominant Purple Cap-winning campaign in 2020. At that time, Rabada had combined wicket-taking ability with control while maintaining an economy rate of 8.34. After this, he showed a similar disciplined performance in IPL 2021 and 2022 and kept his economy comfortably below 8.50.
However, the last three seasons before IPL 2026 have painted a different picture. Rabada has given runs in 21 matches during this phase at an average of 10.09, 8.86 and 11.57 respectively, while taking only 20 wickets. His struggles continued in the current season, where he returned figures of 3-0-34-1 in the Indian Premier League 2026.
Reflecting on Rabada's struggles, Dale Steyn observed that the South African fast bowler is finding answers in his bowling at the moment.
Espancrinfo quoted Steyn as saying, “From the looks of it he hasn't performed as well as might have been expected.”
Steyn also drew comparisons to Marco Johnson, who continues to perform well. Jensen's recent outing for PBKS highlighted his ability to stick to his strengths, something Steyn believes Rabada has struggled with recently.
“On the other side of things, you have Jansson, who is getting better and better. He is starting to play for teams that are winning more trophies – for Sunrise Eastern Cape, he has won [SA20 league] Now three years out of four. I think it adds a feeling, like a belief that you can do it at the highest level. And Jensen has definitely started to step up now, where KG didn't have as many medals or trophies or anything like that and his performances have leaned in that direction,” Steyn said.
He further stressed that despite his poor form, he is expecting a strong comeback from his former colleague.
“I'm hoping this is the season when he can really stand out because he's a real wicket-taking bowler, he's won the Purple Cap once so he knows what it's like. But can he – again, we're talking about those inches – find something else in his game to take a step forward? Because we've seen him mischievous: he had his foot on the line in games he should have stopped and things like that, where you just feel … but. “Maybe he's down by a few wickets and maybe just a little bit of luck and hopefully this season can be that season for him,” he concluded.
The Gujarat-based franchise will take on Rajasthan Royals in their next match on April 4 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
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