IPL 2018: Match 4, SRH vs RR - Rajasthan Royals Predicted XI

The new look Rajasthan Royals is all set to start their 2018 IPL campaign. They will be led by Ajinkya Rahane in the tournament this season. Prior to the commencement of the tournament, they were heavily jolted by the unceremonious exit of Steve Smith from the tournament. However, they are still very much equipped to get their act going in the tournament.

The Rajasthan Royals will kick start their campaign against a side with similar fate as theirs. They will be playing the Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, in Hyderabad, in their first match this season. They have some very good quality players in the lineup and it will actually be interesting to see the eleven they decide to take the field on the day.

Also, it will be worth watching if some of the key players would be willing to relinquish their regular batting positions for the cause of the team. The SRH camp looks shaky at the onset but can never be taken lightly. The RR side certainly know this fact and hence, would want to field their best possible combination for the match.

Here is the Rajasthan Royals Predicted XI for the match:

Openers (Rahul Tripathi, D’Arcy Short)

Rahul Tripathi was a top draw in the IPL auctions this year. He got a lot of attention from the franchises owing to his exploits for the Rising Pune Supergiant last year. Tripathi, albeit relatively new to the IPL roster, already has a top score of 93 in the league. He is a hard-hitting batsman who will definitely make the cut in the playing eleven.

At the RPS camp, Tripathi opened with Ajinkya Rahane. In the Rajasthan Royals setup, he could pretty much partner up with Australian batsman D’Arcy Short. Rahane could make way for Short at the opening slot and come in the middle-order. Short was the leading run scorer at the BBL this season. He is as attacking as David Warner at the top role.

Middle-order (Ajinkya Rahane, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson)

In the middle-order the Rajasthan camp can get the stability from Ajinkya Rahane. The newly-appointed skipper is experienced enough to play in the toporder. He would be keen to play the anchoring role for the team in the tournament this year. He is ideally suited to bat at number three in this RR setup.

English batsman Jos Buttler has been in a phenomenal form in the recent times. He had a very impressive tour down under wherein his exploits in the limited overs cricket fetched the new tag of being the finisher for his side. Buttler, at number 4, looks like a very solid proposition for the Royals.

Sanju Samson is yet another exciting young Indian cricketer who has been around in the tournament for quite some time now. Samson is also expected to don the wicketkeeping gloves for the team, unless the management decide to let Buttler  do the duties behind the stumps.

All-rounders (Ben Stokes, K Gowtham, Jofra Archer)

The all-rounders department looks very solid for the Rajasthan Royals. Ben Stokes has been one of the most popular cricketers in the last couple of years. Also, his big price tag was the talking point last season. Stokes did not disappoint either and performed exceedingly well for the Supergiant including a ton last season. This year, the Royals would hope for similar returns from Stokes.

Along with Stokes, another big domestic name could be in the playing eleven for the Royals. K Gowtham is one of the popular Indian names in the domestic circuit. Gowtham is primarily an off-spinner who has trained under legendary former Indian spinner E Prasanna. Known as ‘new Bhajji’, Gowtham can hit the long ball too.

Jofra Archer has been a sensation. Archer, the Barbados-born cricketer, is trying to make it to the English side following the footsteps of Chris Jordan. He has been a sensation in the T20 leagues and his exploits for the Hobart Hurricanes in the BBL this season fetched him a top bid from the Royals at the IPL auctions.

Spinners (Ankit Sharma)

In the spin bowling department, the Rajasthan Royals could either go with Ankit Sharma or Shreyas Gopal. Considering the fact that Ankit Sharma has had success whilst bowling in the powerplay, his case to make the cut seems a legit proposition. Also, he will have the support of K Gowtham in the department.

Fast bowlers (Jaydev Unadkat, Dhawal Kulkarni)

In the fast bowling department, two Indian cricketers are likely to make it to the playing eleven. Dhawal Kulkarni and Jaydev Unadkat have both been big names in the Indian domestic circuit. Furthermore, both have played international cricket and are immensely experienced. They have played a lot of IPL too.

Hence, it is very much likely to see Unadkat and Dhawal make it to the side ahead of the likes of Anureet Singh, who is also in the squad. Both Unadkat and Dhawal will get assistance from Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes in the fast bowling department.

Here is a look at RR Predicted XI for the match against SRH:

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