IPL 2022: Rajasthan Royals and their hunt for the Second IPL trophy

Rajasthan Royals | The Rajasthan Royals revealed their all-new 'pink and blue' team jersey for 2022 IPL season. The 2022 Royals jersey is inspired by a unique Rajasthani design called the ‘Leheriya’, meaning ‘wave’ in English. Dating back to the 17th century, the tie-and-dye patterns used in this design result in diagonal or v-shaped stripes, resembling the winds blowing across Rajasthan’s deserts. Indian skipper Sanju Samson will continue to lead the Royals in the 15th edition of IPL. (Image: Rajasthan Royals)

The term ‘underdogs’ is closely associated with the Rajasthan Royals from the initial days. Since the inception of the Indian Premier League (IPL), the Royals have nurtured many young talents and bestowed many stem-winding performances. When everyone thought it was inconceivable, it was Australian legend Shane Warne who led Royals to its only IPL title in 2008. It took Rajasthan four years to again enter the top-four after the inaugural season. In 2020, they also attained the wooden spoon. All-together, they have lacked consistency and failed to maintain an equilibrium squad after the first season.

The 2022 mega-auction was stupendous for some teams, while for others it was underwhelming. The Royals luckily had a remarkable run at the auction; they not only addressed certain gaps; but also spent the money wisely only on the players that were a necessity. Rajasthan only purchased four overseas players till day two of the auction. It was before they purchased the remaining four overseas in four minutes during the last session. Unlike other teams, the Royals have a combination of sturdy Indian and overseas talents this season.

The quandary with the Royals was their over-dependence on overseas players. Their eleven used to revolve around Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Steve Smith, and Sanju Samson barely got any collaboration from Indian players. This year Royals managed to secure a reckonable Indian department. Players like Devdutt Padikkal, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Riyan Parag, and Karun Nair can persist in difficult situations.

Devdutt Padikkal, 21, previously played for the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL. Traditionally an opener, Devdutt has scored 884 runs since the time he made his debut in 2020. Ironically, he also scored his only IPL century against Rajasthan Royals last year while opening the innings. However, the left-handed would most preferably bat at number three for the Royals, vacating the opening spots for Buttler and Jaiswal. The Englishman Buttler has scored around 1,400 runs playing for the Royals, including one century and ten fifties. On the contrary, the 20-year old Jaiswal gave promising starts last year but failed to convert them into a big total. This time around, the Royals would be expecting Jaiswal to take the opening position and score tons of runs.

Dhruv Jorel, who was the 2020 U-19 World Cup finalist, has also joined the Royals camp. The wicket-keeper batter prefers playing in the middle order and is a conventional player with the bat. Either Shimron Hetmyer or Rassie van der Dussen can top-off the Royals’ batting by playing at number five. Following that fashion also allows Jimmy Neesham/ Riyan Parag to bat at number six. Shimron made his IPL debut for Royal Challengers Bangalore and then moved to Delhi Capitals. The Guyanese batter has a mediocre IPL record but bats with a strike rate of 151 in the middle order. The South-African batter Rassie, who is yet to make his IPL debut, can construct his innings according to the nature of the game. The 33-year old plays with a handful average of 38 and have scored 933 international runs playing for South Africa.

Similarly, the Royals have also done a great job at procuring a bowling attack that can outscore any opponent on a given day. Royals first purchased Ravichandran Ashwin at the auction for only five crores. The right-arm off-spinner has represented four IPL franchises to date and embodies plenty of experience. The 35-year old is also the sixth-highest leading wicket-taker in the IPL with 145 wickets. One steal was not enough for the Royals, so they also managed to buy Yuzvendra Chahal at only 6.5 crores. The leg-break bowler has picked 139 IPL wickets in just 114 matches. This combination of off-spin and leg-spin will be a nightmare for the batters going forward into the tournament. Moreover, uncapped spinners like KC Cariappa and Shubham Garhwal can also deceive the batters in the wickets of Pune and Mumbai.

Seamers like Trent Boult, Prasidh Krishna, Navdeep Saini, Nathan Coulter-Nile, and Obed McCoy are the principal names in the bowling department. Boult and Coulter-Nile both represented Mumbai Indians in the last season. Boult also played a central role in Mumbai’s successful campaign in 2020. The left-arm fast bowler has grabbed 76 wickets in 62 IPL matches. Out of which, 38 wickets came in the last two seasons. Prasidh Krishna (26) and Navdeep Saini (29) also have a notable IPL record. Saini can effortlessly bowl at 140kmph while executing yorkers in the death overs. Prasidh, on the other hand, can swing the bowl both ways in the powerplay.

The most interesting buy for Royals would be Obed McCoy. The left-arm medium-pacer has hardly played any international cricket. The 25-year old has represented West Indies in 13 T20I’s and grabbed 19 wickets. However, he can be lucrative when it comes to franchise cricket. McCoy has picked 37 wickets in 29 matches playing for St. Lucia Kings in the Caribbean Premier Leauge.

The inaugural IPL champions are the front-runners to lift their second trophy this year. They also seemingly have the most poised squad out of all the ten teams. The Royals’ director of cricket and head coach, Kumar Sangakara, also said “We have secured depth in every department. The main thing is that we have a very competent side. We tried to get the core right and get the right players for the roles.” The IPL is all set to commence from 26th March with the first game being played between Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders in the Wankhede Stadium.