The Royals are eyeing redemption in the second half of the IPL 2021 in UAE after years of disappointment. The inaugural season champions are hoping to reclaim their coveted crown via the UAE leg of the competition, starting September 19.
RR found it quite difficult to cope at neutral venues during the first leg of the season, where they played five matches at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai and then moved to the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi for their other two fixtures.
They won only two of their matches in Mumbai and one of the two in Delhi before the IPL 2021 was brought to an untimely halt due to COVID-19 cases.
Prediction
Never short of talent, the franchise’s problems are more about the lack of collective performances from their unit over longer periods through the campaign. But this year, their troubles have been mounted by the absence of premier all-rounder Ben Stokes and lead pacer Jofra Archer.
Stokes hurt his finger while diving in the very first game of RR’s campaign and was ruled out of the entire tournament back then. But even as the IPL 2021 resumes after a four-month hiatus, the English all-rounder is not available for selection as he is undergoing an indefinite break from cricket to resolve his mental health concerns.
Archer couldn’t play the first half of IPL 2021 due to an elbow injury he aggravated in March. Sadly for RR, the pacer’s rehab for the injury and the surgery it required has taken more time than expected and he was last month ruled out of action for the entire year after it emerged that he has a recurring stress fracture on his right elbow.
To add to RR’s woes, they’ve lost their star wicketkeeper-batsman Jos Buttler for the second half of IPL 2021. Buttler has opted out of the remainder of the tournament to be with his wife after the birth of their second child recently. The absence of Australian pacer Andrew Tye will also be felt.
Nevertheless, the RR think-tank has made interesting replacement signings in the form of Oshane Thomas, Evin Lewis and Tabraiz Shamsi to their squad.
Heading into the UAE leg, skipper Sanju Samson is his team’s top run-getter for the IPL 2021 with 277 runs at an average of 46.16 and strike-rate of 145.78. But in the absence of second-placed Buttler, there is a massive dip in the run-charts for the team. Third-positioned Shivam Dube has made only 145 runs from his seven innings at an average of 24.16 and strike-rate of 117.88.
On the bowling front, Chris Morris sits at the top but his 14 wickets have come while he has conceded 8.61 runs per over. Young Chetan Sakariya has been a bit of a positive with seven wickets from seven matches and an economy rate of 8.22.
RR will resume their campaign on September 21 in Dubai against the Punjab Kings. They play three of their remaining matches in Dubai, two in Abu Dhabi and two in Sharjah.
As far as predictions go, RR look set for another season of disappointment where they miss out on the playoffs. The Royals have shown their spark on various instances but that has happened far too infrequently for their fans’ liking.
