But this season, at the same venue and against the same opposition, the script changed completely. Jitesh managed just 1 run off 3 balls in a high-pressure chase of 213, with RCB eventually suffering a nine-run defeat via the DLS method. His dismissal sparked criticism from fans and experts alike, with many questioning his game awareness in crunch situations.Speaking on ESPNcricinfo’s Timeout show, Rayudu expressed concern over Jitesh’s technical issues, particularly against short-pitched pace bowling.“I think he had a great opportunity to come back sharp after the small break that they had, but he just seems to be getting late on short balls. That’s an area he could have worked on in this gap, and I don’t think he did. The same thing is happening again and again, and it’s not a good sign because IPL matches come really fast. If you have a weakness that is as profound as what we are seeing with Jitesh, it becomes very hard to compensate for it or improve during the tournament because there are not many practice sessions and not much time now,” Rayudu said.Jitesh has particularly struggled against pace this season. In eight innings, he has been dismissed seven times by fast bowlers while scoring only 28 runs against pace at an average of just four. Adding to the backlash, fans also resurfaced an old comment made by Jitesh during an appearance on AB de Villiers’ YouTube channel last year, where he had jokingly said:“You won’t believe me, but I always pray to God for my top order to collapse so I can bat and score.”