Royals, SRH aim for winning start

New Delhi: For the first time in 15 years, the Rajasthan Royals, who won the inaugural edition of the Indian Premier League, look like a side that can go down the wire and win the tournament. The Jaipur-based franchise under Sanju Samson’s leadership has made some interesting buys in the mega auction that took place in Bengaluru last month. They strengthened the Indian core by adding the likes of senior spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal and a host of youngsters in the form of Devdutt Padikkal, Prasidh Krishna and Navdeep Saini, who have already made a name for themselves at the highest level.

Among the overseas recruits, they have Jos Buttler, who was one of the three players retained by the franchise along with Sanju and young opening batter Yashasvi Jaiswal. And they roped in the services of West Indies U-19 World Cup-winning skipper Shimron Hetmyer, South African Rassie Van der Dussen, Kiwi all-rounder Jimmy Neesham and fast bowler Trent Boult, to name a few.

The addition of all these big names in Rajasthan makes them a balanced side which has a number of match winners. Over the years, RR started as an underdog because of the lack of good Indian players, but this time, the team at Sanju’s disposal has every element that makes it one of the top contenders for the title.

But the battles are not won on paper, and the Royals’ first test will be against 2016 winners Sunrisers Hyderabad. The Orange Army has also made some significant changes after the departures of David Warner and Rashid Khan. The overseas duo weren’t retained and will ply their trade for a new team from this year onwards. SRH looks a bit weak as compared to others, but with an inspirational leader in Kane Williamson, it would be foolish to count them out. They have signed West Indies wicket-keeper batter Nicholas Pooran for Rs 10.75 crore and will expect him to make a big impact. They also have Washington Sundar, Rahul Tripathi, Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T Natarajan, Kartik Tyagi, and Abhishek Sharma in their ranks.

The clash between the two former winners will be played on Tuesday at the Maharashtra Cricket Association stadium in Pune, which will host the first match of this year’s edition. (Agencies)