3 positives for RR despite not making it to the playoffs in IPL 2023
After they finished IPL 2022 as the runners-up, the vast majority of cricket pundits had the Rajasthan Royals (RR) as among the favourites to win this year's edition. RR started the season in brilliant fashion, winning four out of their first five games, which further validated the predictions of the pundits.
However, the Royals suffered a dramatic fall in fortunes as they won only three of their next nine games and failed to qualify for the playoffs. RR's downfall was caused by various factors, including Jos Buttler's poor form, the middle-order's inconsistency, and tactical blunders.
Ahead of next season, RR will look to strengthen the departments in which they have struggled this year. Still, there were a few positives that the franchise can be happy about and here, we look at three of them.
#1. Yashasvi Jaiswal's coming of age
Yashasvi Jaiswal is undoubtedly the biggest positive for the Royals from their IPL 2023 campaign. The 21-year old southpaw delivered some absolutely sensational performances and finished the season with a tally of 626 runs in 14 innings. His runs came at a strike-rate of 163.61, which is testimony to the profound impact that he had.
He smashed one century and five half-centuries and is currently fourth on the list of highest run-getters in IPL 2023. More than the numbers, what stood out was his confidence and dominating style of play as he made some greats look like club bowlers.
In Jaiswal, the Royals have someone who is young and vastly talented. He will no doubt be of great service to the franchise in the future and thus, must be taken care of.
#2. The entry of Dhruv Jurel
Dhruv Jurel is one of the best finds of the season 🤩
📸: IPL/JioCinema
#IPL2023 #RCBvsGT #crickettwitter https://t.co/WEAHJzHquo
For the past few years, the Rajasthan Royals invested a lot of time and money on 'Project Riyan Parag'. However, the seeds that they sowed did not bear any fruits. They backed Parag to cement his position as a finisher but it wasn't to be.
This year, they tried another youngster, Dhruv Jurel, for the same role. Jurel, unlike Parag, grabbed the opportunities that he got with both hands. He scored 152 runs at a superb strike-rate of 172.73. His performances earned him rich praise from some legends and he is surely a gem that will shine more in the future.
#3. The spin department
On paper, the Rajasthan Royals had arguably the best spin bowling line-up amongst all the teams in IPL 2023. This was due to the presence of two absolute stars in Yuzvendra Chahal and Ravichandran Ashwin. The two stalwarts did not let the team down as they made up for a lacklustre show from the pacers barring Trent Boult.
Chahal picked up 21 wickets in the season and in the process became the tournament's most successful bowler, overtaking Dwayne Bravo's tally of 183 wickets. Ashwin, on the other hand, picked up 14 wickets at an economy of 7.51. Both were reliable options for skipper Sanju Samson and this is one department that the Royals do not need to tamper with.