Ravindra Jadeja spent most of Tuesday doing what he has done best for over a decade in Test cricket, making batters dance to his tune, choking runs, and eventually breaching their defences. Yet, beneath another productive day with the ball in Colombo lay a peculiar, almost comical, statistical nightmare that has haunted the veteran spinner for more than three years.



Here’s the staggering number: 22 consecutive DRS reviews off Jadeja’s bowling in Tests, and not a single on-field decision has been overturned. Not one. The latest blot came during Sri Lanka’s first innings in the second Test, when India reviewed an lbw appeal against Keshara Nuwantha. Replays, however, showed a clear inside edge before the ball kissed the pad. The not-out call stood, and India lost their review a scene that has become painfully familiar.



This review horror starkly contrasts with Jadeja’s actual bowling prowess. He later castled Pasindu Sooriyabandara for a well-made 80, helping India reduce Sri Lanka to 265/8 at stumps, after the visitors had declared their first innings at a massive 503/9. That wicket pushed Jadeja’s Test tally to 353, with Sri Lanka still trailing by 238 runs at the close of Day 3.



Now, let’s break down that headline number with a crucial nuance. Not all 22 reviews have cost India a review. Four of those unsuccessful attempts ended as umpire’s call, meaning the original decision stayed, but India got to keep their review. The remaining 18 were outright failures, lost forever. So, the drought stands at zero successful overturns from 22 attempts, with India burning 18 reviews in the process. Only four, just 18.2%, were close enough to be labelled umpire’s call.



The last time Jadeja successfully overturned a decision? July 2023, during the Dominica Test against West Indies. Kemar Roach was given not out by umpire Richard Kettleborough after being struck on the pad. Jadeja was convinced, India reviewed, and ball-tracking showed the ball hitting the stumps before the bat arrived. Roach was dismissed lbw for 1 that was Jadeja’s 271st Test wicket. Since then, he has bagged 82 more wickets across conditions and opponents, yet not a single review off his bowling has yielded an extra scalp through DRS. That stat alone captures the bizarre irony.



This isn’t a new concern either. During India’s 2023 home series against Australia, skipper Rohit Sharma famously joked about Jadeja’s over-enthusiasm, saying, “Especially Jaddu, yaar! Every ball he thinks it’s out!” Rohit admitted he often had to calm his spinner down and remind him where the ball was actually heading. Five months later came that solitary success in Dominica and since then, silence.



So here we are: 22 reviews, zero overturns, 18 lost, 4 umpire’s calls, and 82 wickets in between. Jadeja can still bamboozle batters with ease. But when it comes to raising that finger for DRS? Perhaps India would be wiser to wait for the umpire to raise his finger first.