IPL 2020 Team Prediction: Possible Playing XI of Rajasthan Royals (RR) Team in IPL 13

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Updated: February 7, 2020
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IPL 2020: Rajasthan Royals (RR) Predicted Playing XI in IPL 13

Rajasthan Royals, the winners of the inaugural season of IPL, have changed their auction strategy time and again over the years. This Jaipur-based team initially focused on young talents and upcoming players. However, in the last couple of seasons, the team has been increasingly focusing on the big names of the business.

They have players like Jos Buttler, Jofra Archer, Jaydev Unadkat and Ben Stokes to solidify their chances of winning. Now, speaking of this year’s auction, they did not retain Ajinkya Rahane for this season. They have brought in Robin Uthappa while replacing Rahane. Their funds were also freed up by getting back Unadkat at a low price. Besides major names like Andrew Tye and David Miller, Rajasthan also has promising youngsters like Yashasvi Jaiswal. The team will be led from the front by Steve Smith.

So, here’s looking at the strongest possible lineup of Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2020:

The Openers of RR: Robin Uthappa and Jos Buttler

Jos Buttler, the talented wicketkeeper from England, will be opening the innings once again for the Royals. This time, he will have a new partner in Robin Uthappa. Buttler has really proved his mettle for the team. In the previous season, he had secured 311 runs in only eight matches. He has a strike rate of 151.70 and an average of 38.87.

Uthappa had a rather dismal outing last season with the Kolkata Knight Riders. He couldn’t score more than 282 runs in twelve matches that he played for Kolkata, and his strike rate stood disappointingly at 115.10. Promoting him to the position of the opener would be a good idea because he can have a major impact here.

The Middle order of RR: Steve Smith, Riyan Parag and Sanju Samson

Steve Smith, the former captain of the Australian team, will be the captain for the Royals this season. He has an impressive track record of leading the Rising Pune Supergiant to the finals in 2017. He even bagged 319 runs in twelve games for Rajasthan in 2019. If he somewhat improves his strike rate, he’ll be pretty much unstoppable.

Riyan Parag, the eighteen-year-old Indian all-rounder, has earned quite a lot of praise from veterans because of his impressive batting in the previous season of IPL. In only seven matches played in that season, he aggregated 160 runs and a strike rate of 126.98. He is the one to watch out for, if his previous games are any indication of his talent.

Sanju Samson, the batsman and wicketkeeper from Kerala, will aim to strengthen his place in the National Team by faring well in IPL this season. He scored 342 runs, including a century, in the twelve games he played last year.

All-Rounders of RR: Rahul Tewatia & Ben Stokes

Ben Strokes was one of the record holders of the most expensive signing in the overseas category. However, the last two IPL seasons have been hugely disappointing for him. He scored only 123 runs in total across the nine matches he played. The strike rate of 124.24 also didn’t make the management happy. In terms of bowling, he gave away runs at an economy rate of 11.22, even though he picked up six wickets. However, his international performances have been amazing this year and the management still has high hopes from this English player.

Tewatia, the right hand all-rounder, has secured his place in the team because of his ability to play the shots during the slog overs and bowl leg-spinners in the middle overs. He didn’t make much noise in the IPL yet, but this just might be his season.

Bowlers of RR: Shreyas Gopal, Jaydev Unadkat, Jofra Archer, and Ankit Rajpoot

The spin bowling department at Rajasthan will be led by Shreyas Gopal. This leg-spinner from Karnataka had the best season last year when he bagged twenty wickets in fourteen matches. Jofra Archer has been relentless ever since he started playing IPL. He had picked up twenty six wickets in the two seasons that he has played. He has an economy rate of 7.52 as well.

Jaydev Unadkat, the left-arm pacer, would offer the perfect support in the fast bowling section. This is the season where he’ll be out to prove himself after his no-show for the last two seasons. Finally, there’s Ankit Rajpoot, the fast bowler who has proven his mettle consistently.

All in all, it seems like this is going to be a good season for Rajasthan Royals if they play their cards right.

Predicted Playing XI of RR in IPL 2020

Jos Buttler (WK), Robin Uthappa, Sanju Samson, Steve Smith (C), Ben Stokes, Riyan Parag, Shreyas Gopal, Jofra Archer, Ankit Rajpoot, Mayank Markhande, and Jaydev Unadkat.