The Rajasthan Royals won four of their first five matches in the 2023 IPL. They climbed to the top of the standings.
However, with only one game remaining in the league phase, Sanju Samson and company are in a bad situation. With six victories in 13 games, the Rajasthan Royals are sixth and essentially out of the play off race. To finish in the top four, they must significantly boost their net run rate and hope that other outcomes go their way.
Only a few could have predicted the course of RR’s campaign before the season began. RR were one of the favorites to win this year’s trophy. What went so tragically wrong?
Here are the three most important reasons for RR’s troubles in IPL 2023.
3) Barely any quality all-rounders
The majority of RR’s hitters are incapable of contributing with the ball. This was one of RR’s major issues in IPL 2022. They had only a few players who could bridge the gap between the batting and bowling departments.
Rajasthan had two things going for them this time. The first was the wise auction purchase of Jason Holder, and the second was the development of talented local all-rounders like Riyan Parag and Akash Vashisht who could contribute in both departments.
This is not the case in 2023. Holder was utilised ineffectively before being benched, while Parag failed to perform and met the same fate as the West Indian. Meanwhile, Vashisht has not had any opportunities to explore.
As a result, Rajasthan Royals have had very few genuine all-rounders in their lineup.
2) Poor use of the impact player rule
Dhruv Jurel has been utilised as a finisher in the lower-middle order. The effect of all-rounders has diminished in IPL 2023, owing mostly to the impact player rule. Teams may now afford to play an extra specialist or two at the expense of an all-rounder, but RR have made little use of this option.
The Royals have frequently chosen to go into games with only five specialist bowlers, leaving them with little options in that regard. More oddly, they have refused to accept the extra cushion of an impact player.
Kuldeep Sen, Navdeep Saini, Kuldip Yadav, Murugan Ashwin, and Abdul Basith are among those who have only been given one or two chances as impact players. The more frequent ones, such as Devdutt Padikkal and Parag, have been employed in a variety of ways.
Rajasthan Royals had the potential to address their all-rounder void through wise use of impact players, but they failed terribly.
1) Key players failed to deliver this year
How did Rajasthan Royals make it to the IPL 2022 final with such a weakened roster? That was thanks in major part to two all-time great seasons from Jos Buttler and Yuzvendra Chahal.
Buttler easily won the Orange Cap, while Chahal held off Wanindu Hasaranga to win the Purple Cap. Aside from the top combination, Sanju Samson and Shimron Hetmyer made significant contributions during the season.
Things were different in IPL 2023. Buttler has battled with consistency, while Chahal has been inconsistent for lengthy stretches. Prasidh Krishna who was one of their top bowlers last season, is out with an injury. Meanwhile, Samson and Hetmyer have failed much more frequently this season.
The lack of productivity from their star players, along with the inability of their younger players (with the exception of Yashasvi Jaiswal) to step up, has badly harmed Rajasthan Royals this season.