IPL 2019: 3 Unsold players who could have helped Rajasthan qualify for the playoffs
At the start of IPL 2019, Rajasthan Royals had a well-balanced squad on paper and they would have fancied their chances before the start of the season. However, they were slow to get off the blocks and could manage to win only in their 4th game. They could win only 2 of their first 8 games and their season was pretty much done and dusted. It was at this point that RR made Steve Smith their captain.
This started a remarkable turnaround for them and they won 3 of their next 4. Relieved of captaincy, Ajinkya Rahane found form and new skipper, Steve Smith relished the role of being captain. These 2 along with the likes of Sanju Samson, Shreyas Gopal, and Jofra Archer carried the team. 17 year old, Riyan Parag also won them games.
However, a washed out game against RCB ended their chances of qualifying, RR spent a lot of money on a few players at the auction, and it left them with a minimal budget to buy other players. On that note, let us have a look at 3 unsold players who could have helped RR qualify for the playoffs.
#3 Parvez Rasool
Parvez Rasool has fallen from being an Indian cricketer 2 years ago to being an IPL discard. He was among India's top 10 spinners a couple of years ago but is now finding it hard to get an IPL contract. It is quite surprising that he has gone unsold in the auction for 2-3 years, even though, he has been performing well in the Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy. He picked up 5 wickets in 5 games at an economy rate of 6.75 in the 2019 Mushtaq Ali tourney.
While Shreyas Gopal picked up wickets on a consistent basis, he didn't have another spinner to support him. Riyan Parag isn't a full-time bowler and the likes of Krishnappa Gowtham and Sudhesan Midhun failed to deliver. They couldn't accommodate Ish Sodhi as they had to use their other overseas players to give the team a balanced look.
In such a scenario, Rasool could have been the perfect foil to Shreyas Gopal. While Rasool would stem the flow of runs, Gopal could have picked up wickets from the other end. He has an economy rate of 6.8 in T20 cricket and has picked up 41 wickets in 51 games.