IPL 2026: KKR Skipper Ajinkya Rahane’s Persistent Powerplay Batting Struggles Under Scanner

KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane is under intense scrutiny following another batting failure against the Gujarat Titans in IPL 2026. With playoff hopes at stake, his slow powerplay approach and captaincy decisions have drawn heavy criticism from fans and experts alike, raising questions about his role as both leader and opener.

The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain, Ajinkya Rahane, has yet again failed to deliver in the IPL 2026 match against the Gujarat Titans at the Eden Gardens Stadium in Kolkata on Saturday, May 16.

The KKR, led by Rahane, are currently in a do-or-die situation as they fight to keep their playoff qualification hopes alive. After being put into bat first by the GT captain, Shubman Gill, the hosts’ openers, Ajinkya Rahane and Finn Allen, were hoping to build a solid partnership while providing an early momentum in the innings.

However, Rahane’s stay at the crease was as short as a fleeting cameo, as he was clean-bowled by Mohammed Siraj for just 14 runs off 14 balls. Before dismissal, the veteran Indian batter smashed a four and a six, but his intent was cut short in the fifth over.

Rahane’s Captaincy and Batting Under Scrutiny

The veteran batter Ajinkya Rahane is currently under double pressure as both his leadership tactics and his individual form come under heavy scrutiny from fans, cricket enthusiasts, and experts alike. As a captain, Rahane has been unable to find a winning formula, leaving them on the brink of elimination from the playoffs.

Under Rahane’s captaincy, the KKR suffered a six-run winless streak, including five losses and one no result, leaving them languishing at the bottom of the points table. However, the three-time IPL champions revived late hopes for the playoffs qualification with a four-match winning streak, moving to eighth position on the standings, keeping themselves mathematically alive by the thinnest of margins.

The Kolkata Knight Riders’ path to the playoffs hit a roadblock after their winning streak came to an end following a defeat to the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Raipur, leaving them with a mountain to climb and making their clash against the Gujarat Titans an absolute must-win encounter.

Apart from captaincy, Ajinkya Rahane’s batting, especially as an opener, has also been a major point of concern, with his slow approach drawing heavy criticism for stifling KKR's scoring rate in the powerplay. In powerplay, Rahane scored 157 runs at an average of 14.27, exposing his profound inability to build a substantial foundation at the top of the order.

Overall, Ajinkya Rahane has aggregated 251 runs, including a fifty, at an average of 22.81 and a strike rate of 130.72 in 12 matches.

Rahane’s Powerplay Batting Struggles Spark Intense Debate

Ajinkya Rahane’s continued struggles with the bat in the powerplay have triggered an intense debate as well as criticism on social media, especially X (formerly Twitter), with fans and cricket enthusiasts calling for a rethink of his role as both captain and opener.

Taking to their X handles, fans and cricket enthusiasts slammed Rahane’s performance, calling him ‘abject failure’ as KKR captain, questioning his ability to open in the powerplay, labeling his strike rate too slow, suggesting he step away from T20s, and even proposing that Steve Smith would have been a better leader and batter for the team.

Ajinkya Rahane's string of low scores has left the team management with a massive headache as they reach the business end of the tournament. With KKR needing flawless performances to stand any chance of reaching the playoffs, the captain’s persistent slump means the team is effectively starting every innings on the back foot.

In his IPL career, Ajinkya Rahane has 5283 runs, including two centuries and 34 fifties, at an average of 30.01 and a strike rate of 125.27 in 210 matches.