IPL 2023: Sanju Samson's Rajasthan Royals fell one step short in IPL 2022 of repeating Shane Warne's heroic feat in the first edition of the tournament. Jos Buttler and Yuzvendra Chahal were in red hot form as they bagged the Orange and Purple cap, respectively. Buttler was supported by Sanju Samson, while Chahal received help from Prasidh Krishna and Trent Boult but RR fell short in the final to Gujarat Titans. Let's see how they can fare in the upcoming season of the tournament.
List of purchased players in IPL 2023:
Jason Holder, Adam Zampa, Donovan Ferreira, K.M. Asif, Murugan Ashwin, Akash Vashisht, Abdul P A, Kunal Rathore and Joe Root.
List of released players ahead of IPL 2023:
Anunay Singh, Corbin Bosch, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Karun Nair, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Rassie van der Dussen, Shubham Garhwal and Tejas Baroka
Rajasthan Royals squad for IPL 2023:
Jos Buttler (wk), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Devdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson (capt, wk), Shimron Hetmyer, Riyan Parag, Joe Root, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Donovan Ferreira, Kunal Singh Rathore, Jason Holder, Akash Vasisht, Abdul Basith, Yuzvendra Chahal, R Ashwin, Adam Zampa, KC Cariappa, M Ashwin, Trent Boult, Navdeep Saini, Obed McCoy, Kuldeep Sen, Kuldip Yadav, KM Asif, Sandeep Sharma.
What worked for RR in 2022:
In the 15th edition of the Indian Premier League, RR were helped in a big way by big-ticket players. Leading run scorer Buttler guided RR with the bat while leading wicket-taker Chahal spearheaded the bowling line-up. They were helped by contributions from Samson, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Devdutt Padikkal, Prasidh Krishna and Trent Boult as well.
RR have strong core once again:
The Royals have a strong core with big-ticket players playing. Buttler, Jaiswal, Padikkal, Samson and Hetmyer are the top batters of the side, while the bowling features, Ashwin, Chahal, M Ashwin, Boult, Adam Zampa and Navdeep Saini among others. They probably have the strongest spin attack. Jason Holder is a big purchase for them.
Problems for RR:
RR will surely miss the services of Prasidh Krishna, who is suffering from a stress fracture of the back, but they have replaced him with Sandeep Sharma. Krishna's replacement has not played many matches in IPL, with only 12 games in the past two seasons. Obed Mcoy will miss the early stages of the tournament as he nursing his knee injury.
How to bring Root in
It will also be interesting to see how they use Joe Root in their playing XI. They generally prefer to play Buttler and either Jaiswal or Padikkal at the top, with Samson coming at three or four. Hetmyer is the designated finisher with an underfiring Riyan Parag also in the middle order. In a few games last year, Ashwin was promoted in the middle order to swing his bat. But it will be interesting to see how they can play Root.
Holder a big boost
Notably, Jason Holder's inclusion is a big boost for them. He can be another finisher down the order and a gun bowler along with Boult, Saini and others. His and Hetmyer's presence at the lower middle order can help them to experiment a bit with the top order.
The Royals will begin their campaign against SRH. They will be playing home games in two venues with the other one being the ACA Stadium in Guwahati along with the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.
