Follow UsThe good news is that the whole world is talking about the Rajasthan Royals. The bad news is that it’s not for cricketing reasons.
And it’s a shame because the think-tank of the Royals, at the auction table, managed to put together a hell of a team after nailing its retentions. A team with arguably the best spin-attack in the entire competition. A team with the perfect mix of youth and experience. A team with enough firepower in both the batting and bowling departments to take down any side, at any venue, at any given point. Most importantly, a team with more pros than cons.
What remains to be seen now is if it can translate the strength on paper into on-field performance, much like the Punjab Kings did on Sunday.
READ: RR tasked to cover various loopholes in search of new fortunes
Their opponents on Tuesday, the Sunrisers Hyderabad, cannot boast of holding any of the aforementioned titles. Unlike Rajasthan, the SRH squad is bereft of proven performers who are currently at their peak. But it is a side filled with burgeoning talents with incredibly high ceilings, and that alone is reason enough for any opponent team to be mindful of the threats it might encounter.
READ: With a reset, can Sunrisers move on from a forgettable last season?
They will be led by familiar faces, but for both Rajasthan and Sunrisers, a new era begins on Tuesday. A rivalry that has held little significance over the years is about to become a whole lot consequential, even if it's just for a solitary day.
All eyes on Sunrisers’ batting order
Putting together a flexible batting line-up that comprises multiple players who can bat at different positions is common. But what the Sunrisers have done feels almost unprecedented: 24 hours ahead of the game, it is impossible to predict who will bat where.
Looking at the squad, you would think that it would be Kane Williamson and Abhishek Sharma who would open the batting, and for good reason. But there is also every chance that Rahul Tripathi, who was bought by the franchise for a whopping 8.50 crore, might play at the top. After all, Tripathi’s best season in the IPL — 2017, where he amassed 391 runs at a SR of 146 — came as an opener.
That’s three guaranteed starters whose batting position remains a mystery. Throw in Nicholas Pooran and this number grows to four. For Punjab, Pooran operated as a finisher / middle-overs enforcer, but the explosive southpaw bats number three for the West Indies. He is more than capable of batting anywhere between 3 to 6.
It does not end with Pooran, however. Aiden Markram being available for Tuesday’s clash makes it another batter capable of batting anywhere between #1 to #5. Markram plays in the middle-order for the Proteas, but he’s opened the batting 38 times in T20 cricket.
How SRH construct their batting-order will reveal a lot about their tactics for the season. On Tuesday, we’ll find out if SRH are planning to use Williamson as a run-accumulator at the very top or an anchor in the middle, sandwiched between the big hitters. We’ll find out if they’re planning to use Pooran as a finisher or as a counter-attacking number three. We’ll find out how they’ve envisioned using the likes of Tripathi, Abhishek Sharma and Adbul Samad.
Will Prasidh Krishna be targeted?
At the auction table, the Royals broke the bank for Prasidh Krishna, paying a staggering INR 10 crore for the Karnataka pacer. They only opted to do so, however, purely based on potential — Prasidh has, to date, largely blown hot and cold as an IPL bowler, taking 0.8 wickets per game while conceding at nearly 9.30 runs an over.
Even ignoring the price tag, a big season awaits Prasidh Krishna. For the right-armer is more important to RR’s attack than one might think he is.
In Boult, Ashwin and Chahal, the Royals have three world-class bowlers who should pretty much take care of 12 overs every game. But even then, there is a certain amount of pressure on Prasidh to remain consistent, for RR do not have strength in depth on the bowling front, with Neesham and Riyan Parag expected to fill-in four overs every game. At KKR, Prasidh had the luxury to have bad days due to the options Morgan had at his disposal, but that won’t be the case here at RR.
Given Prasidh will also be expected to be the only Indian seamer in the XI, teams might consciously go after him and disrupt Samson’s plans. It’ll certainly be interesting to see if SRH do indeed target Prasidh on Tuesday.
A fresh challenge for Sanju Samson at No.4
IPL 2021 saw Sanju Samson have his most prolific season in the competition yet, amassing 484 runs at an average of 40.33. All these runs came at number three, but this time around the Rajasthan skipper will have to conquer a different challenge: of batting at No.4. The big-money signing of Devdutt Padikkal, who is slated to bat at No.3, means Samson will drop down one spot to No.4, a position where he’s not had success in the IPL: an average of 20.13 to go along with a strike rate of 120.8.
But despite the numbers looking grim, there are reasons to believe that the RR skipper is now well-positioned to excel in the role. Batting at No.4 will mean Samson predominantly operating in the middle-over phase, an area in which he excelled last season. In IPL 2021, Samson faced 187 balls in overs 7-15, and in that scored 248 runs at an average of 62 and SR of 132.6.
Perhaps, what might be needed this time around is for Samson to start slightly quicker. Last season, the skipper was particularly cautious early on, striking at a mere 108.8 in his first 10 balls. At No.4, he might not have the same luxury to take his time to settle.
Nevertheless, despite the change in batting position, Samson remains RR’s most important batter. In his new role, he’ll serve as the bridge between the top-order and the finishers. At times, he might have to double-up as a finisher himself.
Absentees
• With Rassie van der Dussen set to be available, RR will have a full strength squad to choose from.
• Sunrisers will be without Glenn Phillips, who still is in New Zealand having contracted Covid. SRH will also not have Sean Abbott available for Tuesday’s clash.
Probable XIs
RR: Jos Buttler, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Devdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson, Riyan Parag, Shimron Hetmyer, James Neesham, Ravichandran Ashwin, Trent Boult, Yuzvendra Chahal, Prasidh Krishna
SRH: Kane Williamson, Abhishek Sharma, Rahul Tripathi, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Abdul Samad, Romario Shepherd, Washington Sundar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umran Malik, T Natarajan/Kartik Tyagi