Ravindra Jadeja fires shots at Virat Kohli for fake bot followers; challenges, 'Earn Respect in Dressing Room'

Team India veteran all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja recently opened up about the ‘PR game’ in Indian cricket, without naming anyone. Jadeja hinted that certain players in the Indian cricket team may be buying followers and likes on social media, sparking debate in the cricket community on social media.

Ravindra Jadeja’s remarks come on PR strategies amid the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season. With carefully managed public personas, regular brand endorsements, and strategic use of social media, many players appear to be leveraging digital platforms to enhance their popularity and visibility.

Watch: Ravindra Jadeja Criticizes PR Culture in Indian Cricket

Speaking on Ravichandran Ashwin's YouTube channel, Ravindra Jadeja took a dig at the growing influence of PR culture in Indian cricket. Without naming anyone, his remarks sparked online speculation involving big names like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, and Shreyas Iyer.

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Jadeja said that players must earn respect within the team environment. He pointed out that while some social media engagement is genuine, much of it can be bought.

"It's okay for the relentless comments that are posted. I strongly believe that a player should earn respect in the dressing room. Your social media profile and engagement don't matter at all if you can't gain the respect of your teammates. Some are organic, some are bought — and the trend nowadays is to buy the engagement," Jadeja said.

Watch the video of the same posted by a user on X (formerly known as Twitter) below:

Ravindra Jadeja🎙; "Kuch players social media pe likes and followers kharidte hai"😭🔥
You know who is he? pic.twitter.com/qC7TUkFveY

— Imsajal45 (@Sajalsinha0264) May 28, 2025

Ravindra Jadeja Last Featured for Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2025

Ravindra Jadeja recently played for Chennai Super Kings (CSK), led by MS Dhoni, in the IPL 2025 season. The 36-year-old has had a long association with Dhoni. Jadeja made his international debut across all formats under him and played a key role in Team India’s 2013 Champions Trophy win.

Jadeja has been with CSK since 2012, during the peak of Dhoni’s captaincy. They helped the franchise secure IPL titles in 2018, 2021, and 2023.

However, their campaign in the 2025 season was disappointing, with CSK finishing at the bottom of the table after winning just four out of 14 matches. Jadeja also had an underwhelming individual season, scoring 301 runs and taking 10 wickets.

I Have Never Been a Big Fan of Social Media - MS Dhoni

Speaking on Eurogrip Tred Talks, MS Dhoni spoke about PR-driven fame. He revealed that despite pressure from his managers over the years, he always resisted the idea of building a public image through PR or social media.

“I have never been a big fan of social media. Throughout, I have had so many managers and all of them keep pushing. I started playing in 2004; Twitter got popular later on, after which Instagram came in. All the managers told me, ‘you should do some PR, build this and build that’. I had the same answer that if you play good cricket, you don’t need PR,” Dhoni had said.

Also read: Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni demolished in Virender Sehwag's verdict on Digvesh Rathi's ban in IPL 2025