Rajasthan Royals playing XI from Barinder Sran's IPL debut in 2015 - where are they now?
Former Rajasthan Royals bowler Barinder Sran announced his international and domestic retirement on Thursday (August 29). The left-arm pacer made his domestic debut for Punjab in 2011 and featured in his last professional game in February 2021. Sran also played six ODIs and two T20Is for India, picking up a combined 13 wickets.
He made his Indian Premier League debut for Rajasthan Royals in 2015 against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai.
The Steven Smith-led won the toss and elected to bat first. The decision went in their favour as they got an 80-run opening stand in seven overs between Ajinkya Rahane (37) and Shane Watson. Although, the rest of the line-up faltered, Watson remained unbeaten on 104 off 59 to take the Royals to 199. Andre Russell scalped three wickets for the Knight Riders.
In response, KKR lost Gautam Gambhir and Robin Uthappa early, but the trio of Manish Pandey (21), Yusuf Pathan (44) and Andre Russell (37) kept the team in the hunt.
However, the Knight Riders could only finish on 190-9. Chris Morris was the pick of the bowlers for the Royals with four wickets, while Barinder Sran had a forgettable outing, as he conceded 35 runs off three overs.
On that note, let's take a look at what this playing XI of Rajasthan Royals are up to right now.
Top order: Ajinkya Rahane, Shane Watson, Steven Smith (c)
Ajinkya Rahane provided a solid platform to the Rajasthan Royals, with a knock of 37 off 22. He went on to lead the batting charts for the franchise that season with 540 runs.
Currently, he's plying his trade in English domestic competitions and will also be seen in the Indian domestic tournaments. His last international appearance came against the West Indies in July 2023.
Shane Watson was sensational in this game, with an unbeaten 104 off 59, with nine fours and five sixes. He recently served as the coach of San Francisco Unicorns in Major League Cricket and also served as an analyst for JioCinema in IPL 2024.
The skipper of this team, Steven Smith contributed 14 off 11 and couldn't convert his start into a substantial knock. He recently led the Washington Freedom to title victory in the MLC 2024, slamming 88 off 52 in the final.
Middle order/All-rounders: Sanju Samson, James Faulkner, Karun Nair, Chris Morris, Deepak Hooda, Stuart Binny
Sanju Samson had a disappointing outing in this game, scoring just eight off nine. Currently, he's in the scheme of things in the Indian limited-overs set-up and was a part of the champion T20 World Cup 2024 squad.
James Faulkner contributed six with the bat and returned with figures of 1-45 off four overs in this game. He was last seen representing Islamabad United in February 2022.
Karun Nair provided a fine cameo of 16 off 10, with three fours for the Royals. The talented batter has garnered close to 500 runs for Mysuru Warriors and is the second-highest run-scorer in the ongoing Maharaja T20 Trophy.
Although, Chris Morris was run-out on 4, he opened the bowling attack and picked the wicket of Gautam Gambhir. He finished with figures of 4-23 off four overs to help the Royals win the game before retiring in January 2022.
Deepak Hooda couldn't find an opportunity to bat in this game. Although, he actively represented India during the 2022-23 period, he was dropped due to inconsistent form. He had a disappointing IPL 2024 for Lucknow Super Giants, scoring 145 runs at an average of under 20.
Stuart Binny also didn't got to bat but threw down one over and conceded 10 runs for the Royals. He will play for the Urbanrisers Hyderabad in the Legend League Cricket T20 2024 after they purchased him in the auction on August 29.
Bowlers: Dhawal Kulkarni, Barinder Sran
Dhawal Kulkarni impressed with figures of 2/36 off four overs, while taking the important wickets of Robin Uthappa and Manish Pandey. The right-arm pacer retired from all forms of cricket earlier this year and will represent India Capitals in the LLC T20 2024.
Barinder Sran came to bowl in the second over of the innings and finished with figures of 0-35 off three overs. The left-arm pacer last represented Punjab in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021 against Madhya Pradesh, returning figures of 1-91 off nine overs and also contributed 24 off 14.