Rajasthan Royals (RR) – IPL 2019
4 min read
Introduction
If 5 years ago you told me that Rajasthan Royals purchased players worth 12.5 crores, 8.4 crores, 8 crores, 7.2 crores and 6.2 crores, I’d have laughed at you in disagreement. Last 2 auctions though, RR has been splurging, the result of which is that RR posses a solid arsenal, at least on paper.
Suggestive Playing XIs
Mihir’s SWOT Analysis
strengths
- First things first. RR have a good balance within the whole squad.
- There is no shortage in the number of match-winners at the disposal of RR. Sanju Samson, Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Ashton Turner, Ajinkya Rahane and Jos Butler.
- Despite the number of superstars in their lineup, Rajasthan Royals are the dark horses of this year. And that could be their biggest strength.
weaknesses
- If Rajasthan are to reach the playoffs, much of their contributions will come from Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer and Jos Butler. However, these 3 players leave IPL midway for England duties. This is the biggest disadvantage for Rajasthan.
opportunities
- At the risk of having too many hopes from a team known to experiment too much, I hope that Manan Vohra gets to open the batting with Jos Butler. Manan Vohra has always been under-rated and under-used.
- Rajasthan Royals can form a good batting lineup with an explosive opening pair, a stable 3 and 4 in Rahane and Samson, an in-form batsman at 5 like Ashton Turner and explosive finishers in Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer and Krishnappa Gowtham.
- Rajasthan have a solid opportunity to capitalise on the form Ashton Turner is in. He can also roll his arm if the need arises.
threats
- The challenge for Rajasthan is to achieve a perfect balance between not experimenting too much and not persisting with failing strategies too much. And in that is the biggest threat for them.
key player
Jofra Archer —> The man who claimed to finish in the top 3 wicket-takers in the last season of IPL after missing 5 out of 14 matches, Jofra Archer is in the news for many reasons. Whether he makes it to England’s World Cup squad remains to be seen but he is bound to make a bigger mark in this season’s IPL, or at least the RR fan in me hopes so. Cricket-wise, Jofra Archer is the complete package. He has express pace, he has the variations, he can bowl at any stage, he can swing his bat around and he is a very athletic fielder.
prediction
RR have the squad to take them to the playoffs, although the squad which will take them there will leave before the playoffs. All they need is some aggression from Rahane and solid integration plans from the management.
Samrat’s SWOT Analysis
strengths
- Jos Butler was one of the top batsmen in the previous season. This provides a healthy competition among the batsmen.
- Foreign players with good Indian mix make it a good balanced team.
weaknesses
- The form of Ajinkya Rahane might be a concern for the team. He has not been able to get his form back in T-20 cricket since the past one year, due to which he has been dropped from the team very frequently.
- To add to that, team’s middle batting order hasn’t found the right tuning as of last year.
- Jaydev Unadkat will be in pressure to perform after a disappointing season last year making it highly volatile bowling pace unit.
opportunities
- Many players are due of their performance and have loads to prove.
threats
- Good batting unit with decent ball power can trouble this team.
key player
Jofra Archer —> Expect more batting power from him this year while he has already blown us away with his bowling capabilities.
prediction
No, RR wont make it to the playoffs but they might end up around the 5th position.
Roster
