The Rajasthan Royals, in recent years, have been one of the most consistent teams in the league. They finished third in the league standings last season and made it to Qualifier 2, however, with a new-look side and a revamped bowling attack, can the Royals from Rajasthan maintain their consistency?
In this article, we take a look at the five domestic players who can make a difference for Rajasthan Royals this coming season.
Nitish Rana
After spending seven seasons with the Kolkata Knight Riders, where he was one of their most consistent batters, getting past the 300 runs mark every single season except last year – where he spent a majority of the time on the sidelines due to an injury – RR will now be his new home following a INR 4.2 crore purchase in the 2025 mega auction.
Looking at the current composition of the Rajasthan squad, the 31-year-old left-hander will most likely slot in at #3, however, since IPL 2024, Rana hasn’t been in the best of form, averaging just 13 in the UPT20 League followed by a similar showing in SMAT. Looking at RR’s small squad and the lack of back-up options, it will be crucial for Rana to return to his previous best.
Sandeep Sharma
There aren’t many bowlers in world cricket at the moment who can bowl as effectively as Sandeep Sharma does during the death overs. To consistently bowl in the crucial slog overs and go at less than nine runs per over across two IPL seasons is a big achievement. Thus, it wasn’t really a surprise when the Rajasthan Royals retained their premium death overs bowler ahead of the 2025 mega auction.
Although Jofra Archer is the big name player, with his injury issues and lack of experience in the IPL, there’s no doubt that Sandeep Sharma will be the lead bowler in their bowling attack. Moreover, despite not picking up wickets as regularly as one would like, his ability to restrict batter means the other bowlers alongside him end up picking those wickets. Besides, with their fragile bowling department, the 31-year-old will have to be at his best for RR to make any in-roads this season.
Akash Madhwal
Following his breakthrough season with the Mumbai Indians during IPL 2023, where he picked up 14 wickets in just eight innings and helped Rohit Sharma’s team make the playoffs, the 31-year-old seamer from Uttarakhand has gone off the boil in recent times. Madhwal struggled from game time in Hardik Pandya’s first season in-charge of MI, playing just five games and picking up as many wickets with an economy rate of more than 11.
In this season’s Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Madhwal looked in decent form, grabbing eight wickets in five innings and going at just under nine runs per over. With Shimron Hetmyer, Wanindu Hasaranga and Jofra Archer as guaranteed starters, their fourth overseas player will most likely be Maheesh Theekshana. That means it’ll mostly be Impact Sub appearances for Madhwal, at least during the first leg of the season unless he can make room for himself in the playing XI alongside or in place of Sandeep Sharma and Tushar Deshpande.
Tushar Deshpande
Tushar Deshpande, in the last two editions, was without a doubt the Chennai Super Kings’ lead seamer. The 29-year-old seamer from Mumbai bagged 17 wickets last season, going at 8.83 runs per over despite bowling the crucial death overs. Moreover, his skillset and efficiency means he can even make the ball talk when it is brand new, making him a crucial bowler for any IPL franchise.
Although fitness issues have meant the 29-year-old seamer was kept out of action during both the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the Vijay Hazare Trophy, however, getting him back to full fitness and match sharpness will be key if the Rajasthan Royals are to challenge for the playoff spots, especially looking at their thin squad and inexperienced bowling attack.
Riyan Parag
The 23-year-old batter from Assam finally had his breakthrough season with the Rajasthan Royals last season. After five seasons of unfulfilled potential and missed opportunities, Parag came good last season, scoring 573 runs and finishing third in the Orange Cap race behind Virat Kohli and Ruturaj Gaikwad.
More than the runs, it was the manner in which those runs were scored, pulling the team out of some difficult situations with maturity and composure far beyond his years. Given that the current RR squad looks much thinner compared to any other edition, there will be added responsibility on the 23-year-old’s shoulders to come good and prove everyone wrong that last season was not fluke.
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