Kumar Sangakkara heaps praise on Royals young guns

In seven games in IPL 2021, Chetan Sakariya picked seven wickets with a best of 3-31. Not only did he have an impact in the most crucial time, he bagged the wickets of big fishes to give the side an advantage on more occasions than one. Yashasvi Jaiswal played second fiddle to Jos Buttler but when the moment arrived, he left the inhibitions to strike the ball hard.

Overall, the Royals young guns had a decent outing to come back stronger later and that impressed the Head Coach and Director of Cricket Kumar Sangakkara the most.

"Chetan Sakariya was a revelation. He's had a tough year since January so far and our love and prayers are with him. His attitude and ability to build pressure and of course his skill. It's wonderful to have him in the side," Sangakkara said in an RR webinar on Thursday (May 13). 

“We have Anuj, Yash, Mahipal, three youngsters who have been with the franchise for a long time and I was very impressed by all three of them. Yash got a reasonable amount of time in the middle, unfortunately in the match that Anuj got, he didn't get a chance to bat, but he was outstanding in the field. And Mahi worked really hard in the nets to put his hand up for selection. Those three boys were just outstanding for us.”

Among other youngsters, Riyan Parag did well to hang around and batted with a fresh and renewed approach. The Sri Lankan great stated that the entire young group made it a point to showcase their talent in the nets.

"Riyan Parag is also a very, very special player. He's got a huge amount to contribute not just to Rajasthan Royals, but also Indian cricket in the future. He's a very special talent that needs care, nurturing, and development. 

“We had Kuldip Yadav and Akash Singh the two left-arm fast bowlers who worked extremely hard but didn't get a chance, but they worked extremely hard in the nets and I saw a lot of improvement in them from Day 1 to the time that the tournament was on. Mayank Markande, Chetan Sakariya, highly skilled cricketers... Mayank was touch and go in selection. All of them were very impressive," he added.