Rajasthan Royals are without a pace-bowling all-rounder.
Rajasthan Royals (RR) have plenty of issues even before IPL 2026 has begun. The latest setback remains Sam Curran, who has been ruled out of the season with a suspected groin injury. Being an all-rounder, Curran’s unavailability leaves a massive void in the squad.
A major reason RR opted for the big trade before the season was the lack of a quality pace-bowling all-rounder. Last year, they didn’t have any such player, which often made their team unbalanced. Now, the Royals are again in the same position for a fresh season.
ALSO READ:
Rajasthan Royals will obviously seek a replacement and will likely settle for an all-rounder who specialises in one department and gives some depth in the other. Unfortunately, the best options in this department are already sold, and RR will need to settle with an inferior player. Among all the unsold ones, no one offers enough value as Sam Curran in both disciplines.
Hence, they should focus on getting specialists in both departments, and the Impact Player rule will help them do so. In the current setup, RR’s playing XI should look like: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Shimron Hetmyer*, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Donovan Ferreira*, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer*, Ravi Bishnoi, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Sharma. This would mean they play with only three overseas players and draft a batter or a bowler as needed.
As an impact player, the inaugural champions should keep one of Kwena Maphaka or Nandre Burger as a specialist left-arm pacer. They need to strengthen one department in Curran’s absence. He would have provided the left-arm angle with the ball, and fortunately for RR, they have two terrific young sensations in this section.
The biggest reason Rajasthan Royals should strengthen the bowling department is that they can’t afford to go with fewer options. The decks in IPL will be flat and require teams to have variety as a bowling unit. In Curran’s absence, RR won’t have a left-arm pacer unless they play Maphaka or Burger.
Moreover, Jofra Archer has been highly vulnerable in T20s, and his credentials on flat surfaces have often come into doubt lately. Meanwhile, Sandeep Sharma doesn’t play enough competitive cricket at this level and might struggle at times. The same goes for Tushar Deshpande, who has a knack for picking wickets but can be expensive.
Whoever replaces Curran will unlikely bring equal batting and bowling capabilities. He will most likely be a batting all-rounder, and RR have enough depth as a batting unit. In the current setup, Jofra Archer bats at No.8.
If required, they can obviously bring in Shubham Sharma should a batting collapse happen and play with six bowlers, including an all-rounder, Riyan Parag. Shubham showed encouraging skills as a lower-order hitter last season and can whack pace from the start. However, RR have enough depth in the batting unit and should back themselves to get the job done without more batters.
Rajasthan Royals will need to figure out which area they want to strengthen. For powerplay and death overs, they should go with Kwena Maphaka. He can move the new ball and has decent control over his yorkers.
The young sensation has also developed a few slower ones and can vary his lengths to remain unpredictable in slog overs. Meanwhile, Nandre Burger can provide value in the powerplay and middle overs. Burger has a high pace and can move the ball off the pitch.
He can bowl with the new ball and has the height to bowl sharp hard lengths in the middle overs. His natural lengths are relatively short, and he can cramp batters for room with an awkward angle. He gets zip off the surface, and his balls climb on the batters.
RR would want to start with Nandre Burger since he allows them to use Archer and Deshpande with the new ball. Currently, they don’t have an enforcer in the lineup and would want an out-and-out pacer for this role. Burger can do it while also providing enough death-over value.
If he plays, Rajasthan Royals can use one of Archer or Deshpande in the middle overs. That will allow Burger to exploit conditions early on since he can move the ball at pace to bring early wickets. His presence makes them a lot more flexible, with multiple ways to utilise the resources.
For more updates, follow CricXtasy on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
