New Delhi, April 1 – Former Indian cricketer Ambati Rayudu believes Kagiso Rabada needs to rediscover his ability to bowl yorkers in order to regain effectiveness in bowling during the final overs of the 2026 IPL.
Rabada, who won the purple cap in the 2020 IPL, has struggled in recent seasons, taking only 20 wickets in 21 matches across the last three editions. He began this season with figures of 1-34 in three overs for Gujarat Titans, who lost to Punjab Kings by three wickets in New Chandigarh.
"I think one thing we have noticed over the years about Rabada, you know, as Dale Steyn used to bowl that cross-seam type of outswing ball, a baseball-like delivery, and he used to bowl a very effective yorker early on when he was bowling seam-up," Rayudu said on ESPNCricinfo.
"But has he started bowling too much of that cross-seam? He seems to have lost his yorker. I think that's why we are seeing him not bowl so well in the final overs. But initially, he used to bowl really well in the final overs when he just started. Maybe that's something he can get back into his game," Rayudu added.
Steyn, the former South African pacer, felt that Rabada was "searching a little bit" for wickets and had "kind of lost that yorker" in recent years. He also compared Rabada's performance with Marco Jansen, who returned with figures of 1-20 for PBKS in the same game.
"He had fantastic yorkers, and then there was a season or period where the South African bowling line-up kind of went back of a length and crossed the seam, and I think that's where he kind of lost that yorker a little bit, whereas Marco doesn't bowl a lot of yorkers, he uses a lot more variations," Steyn said.
"KG has been searching for that yorker, and I think he's just missed it a little bit. He's missed low full-tosses and he's been hit out of the ground. Whereas Marco has used that length, his height, and the occasional yorker.
"So, KG is searching a little bit, and Marco has kind of figured it out. You can tell by, what is it, ten balls per wicket versus 71 (in the death overs since the start of IPL 2025). One guy is searching, and the other one knows exactly what he wants to do," he added.