Kartik Tyagi came into Sunday’s match at the Wankhede as an Impact Player, a young fast bowler given an opportunity in the biggest domestic cricket competition in the world.

What followed was not the statement Kartik Tyagi was hoping to make, 43 runs conceded in four overs, one wicket, lines and lengths that never quite settled, and by Sunday night one of the greatest fast bowlers the game has produced had something to say about it.

What Dale Steyn observed about KKR pacer Kartik Tyagi and why it matters

Dale Steyn’s tweet after the match was measured but pointed. “Tyagi seems to have changed his action, again. A young man with pace and good skill, but I feel he has yet to believe in his own body’s ability, often copying other bowlers’ actions to find some hidden gem that could work for him. Copying has its advantages, but at some stage, you need to make an action your own. I hope he finds what he’s looking for soon,” Steyn wrote.

The criticism from someone of Dale Steyn’s caliber is not something a young bowler can dismiss lightly, and the observation cuts to the heart of what has held Kartik Tyagi back across a career that has promised considerably more than it has delivered so far.

The pattern Dale Steyn is identifying

Tyagi’s IPL journey has been one of flashes interrupted by inconsistency. He was snapped up by Rajasthan Royals ahead of IPL 2020 and took nine wickets in ten games that debut season, showing enough to suggest he belonged at this level.

The moment that best captured his potential came in IPL 2021 against Punjab Kings, when he defended four runs in the final over with wide yorkers to pull off an almost impossible two-run win.

That is the bowler Steyn is talking about. the one with pace and skill and the ability to deliver in the most pressurized moments. What has followed since has been a series of reinventions.

Released by Rajasthan, picked up by Sunrisers Hyderabad for INR 4 crore where he crossed paths with Steyn himself, featuring in only five games across two seasons. One match for Gujarat Titans in IPL 2024, going for 51 runs with no wickets against CSK.

Unsold in IPL 2025. Picked up by KKR for INR 30 lakh in 2026. Each chapter has involved a slightly different version of his action and a slightly different version of himself, which is exactly what Steyn is cautioning against.

What comes next for Kartik Tyagi in IPL 2026

The saving grace from Sunday is that he dismissed Suryakumar Yadav, a wicket that matters regardless of the context, and that age is still on his side.

The backing of KKR’s coaching staff, which includes the experience of Abhishek Nayar, Shane Watson and Andre Russell as Power Coach, gives him access to knowledge that should help him settle on an identity rather than keep searching for one. Steyn’s concern is not that Tyagi lacks ability.

It is that the constant search for something better is preventing him from trusting what he already has. At some stage every bowler has to stop copying and start committing. For Tyagi, given where his career has arrived, that stage is now.