table of contents
Former India captain Kris Srikkanth has criticized Rajasthan Royals for poor decision-making in the team’s defeat to Delhi Capitals in Delhi on Sunday.
Among other tactical decisions, the most drastic step RR took was to drop experienced all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and replace him with inexperienced Ravi Singh. Srikkanth also criticized RR’s use of impact players.
Rajasthan Royals lost three consecutive times
Royals’ defeat to DC on Sunday extended their losing streak in IPL 2026 to three matches. Like their season, RR could not capitalize on their great start and faltered towards the end. Vaibhav Suryavanshi did what he does best. Sending bowlers across the boundary. For him, it didn’t really matter whether it was Mitchell Starc or Lungi Ngidi in front of him; They all traveled.
Suryavanshi scored 46 runs in just 21 balls, but made an important partnership of 70 runs with Dhruv Jurel. Jurel and RR captain Riyan Parag scored half-centuries and scored 72 runs in 7 overs. But Starc came back in the 15th over and RR never recovered. Starc took the wickets of Parag, Donovan Ferreira and Ravi Singh within four balls.
Rajasthan never looked like coming back from there as they slipped from 161/2 to 193/8 at the end of their 20 overs. Starc won the Player of the Match award by taking the wicket of Dasun Shanaka in the nineteenth over.
Abhishek Porel and KL Rahul scored half-centuries while chasing the target and added 105 runs for the first wicket. But DC’s middle order could not support them. Axar Patel led the team by making a vital 20-run partnership with Tristan Stubbs before adding 22 runs with David Miller. In the end Ashutosh Sharma’s cameo completed the job.
“Something is not right with this team” – Srikkanth on Rajasthan Royals
Srikkanth talked about Rajasthan Royals on his YouTube channel and said that he does not think all is well with the inaugural IPL champions.
“With qualification at stake, you take such a step. This match against DC was the easiest opportunity for them. Jadeja was essential for this match. How can you not play him in the 11? It was an absurd move. I believe there is something wrong in the team. Parag did not even come to collect his trophy for most sixes. So there is something wrong internally within the team,” he said.
He further said, “It was stupid not to play either Jadeja or Bishnoi. Can Ravi Singh replace Jadeja? Jadeja is an excellent all-rounder and you replace him with a young batsman like Ravi Singh in an important match. It felt as if RR did not want to win this match. It seemed that they played to lose. Parag batted brilliantly, but the will to win is missing in the team. He “He has lost his mind by not feeding us.”
Srikkanth also criticized Rajasthan Royals’ use of the impact player rule. Rajasthan Royals included Dasun Shanaka in place of Shubham Dubey during their batting innings, but the move did not prove to be effective.
Shanaka scored 10 runs in 8 balls before becoming the victim of Starc and dismissed KL Rahul with the ball, giving away 29 runs in his three overs.
Srikkanth said, “It was another stupid move. You are already one bowler without Jadeja and you bring Shanaka only for the death overs. What Shanaka did, Archer himself could have done. Shanaka did nothing with bat or ball. He got just one wicket of KL Rahul.”
Srikkanth also criticized Riyan Parag’s call to hand the ball to Donovan Ferreira in the 18th over. Axar Patel and David Miller were on strike and DC needed 35 runs to win from three overs. The Rajasthan Royals captain gave the ball to the off-spinner in search of a matchup opportunity. The move was not successful as Ferreira gave away 16 runs, including two sixes.
He said, “He is bowling because of two left-handed batsmen. Is he even a real off-spinner? Shanaka should have bowled in his place. After giving away 16 runs, Parag is throwing his cap as if it is someone else’s fault. You have done stupid captaincy. Why are you throwing your cap at him? 100% There are some fights within the team.”
Rajasthan Royals upcoming schedule and playoff scenario
After a brilliant performance in the first half of the tournament, Rajasthan Royals had to struggle in the last half. They won each of their first four matches, but lost 6 of their last 8 matches, including their last three, and finished with 12 points after 12 matches.
RR will now have to win both their remaining matches to reach the playoffs, but still, they will need other results to go their way. Losing both matches will almost certainly see them eliminated, while winning just one of the two gives them a chance to progress, but other results need to go their way.
Rajasthan Royals will play Lucknow Super Giants in Jaipur on May 19 and then Mumbai Indians in Mumbai on May 24.
Also read: Ryan Parag’s reaction to small fan in team hotel stirs controversy; the video went viral