5 players RR might release before the next IPL season

The Rajasthan Royals had won the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the year 2008. However, after that season, the Jaipur-based franchise has failed to make it to the final even once. The Royals have qualified for the playoffs in some editions, but they have finished out of the Top 4 on a majority of the occasions.

Inconsistency has been the biggest problem for the Rajasthan Royals. They start their seasons on a grand note. However, as the tournament progresses, they lose their path. The same thing happened in 2020 as well. The Steve Smith-led outfit began their campaign with two emphatic wins over the Chennai Super Kings and the Kings XI Punjab.

However, they finished at the last position on the standings after managing to win only four of their next eight matches. The likes of Jofra Archer, Ben Stokes, Steve Smith, Sanju Samson, Rahul Tewatia, and Jos Buttler did well for the team, but the other players could not contribute much. The team management will look to release a few players before the next season, and here are the five players who might not be retained by the inaugural champions.

5. Ankit Rajpoot 

Ankit Rajpoot is the only Indian uncapped fast bowler to take a five-wicket haul in the IPL history. Rajpoot has played for multiple franchises in his IPL career, but he had one of his worst seasons in 2020. The Rajasthan Royals included him in their playing XI six times in the IPL 2020 season.

However, he could dismiss only two batsmen in those six matches. On top of that, his economy rate of 11.70 put pressure on the other bowlers of the team. Rajpoot’s bowling average of 99.50 shows how the batsmen dominated him this year in the United Arab Emirates.

While RR backed him after a couple of failures in IPL 2020, it is highly unlikely that they would retain him before the next season. Also, RR have Aakash Singh on the bench, a player who impressed a lot with his performance in the U-19 World Cup.