IPL 2024, Rajasthan Royals eye impactful all-rounders: Analysis
What's the story
Rajasthan Royals (RR) released a bunch of their overseas players, including Joe Root and Jason Holder ahead of the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) auction.
They also traded in pacer Avesh Khan from Lucknow Super Giants, with opener Devdutt Padikkal moving to the other side.
The Royals are now devoid of impactful all-rounders as the auction closes in.
Here is their squad analysis.
Details
RR trade Padikkal for LSG's Avesh
Former Delhi Capitals pacer Avesh was bought by the Super Giants in the mega auction in 2022 for Rs. 10 crore. Meanwhile, the Royals paid Rs. 7.75 crore for Padikkal.
Both the players were retained by the respective franchises this year.
However, RR weren't convinced by Padikkal's show at the top. On the other hand, LSG felt they needed an Indian batter.
Release
RR release nine players ahead of IPL 2024
Here are the players released by RR ahead of the 2024 IPL season: Joe Root, Abdul Basith, Jason Holder, Akash Vashisht, Kuldip Yadav, Obed McCoy, M Ashwin, KC Cariappa, KM Asif.
Players traded in by RR: Avesh Khan.
Players traded out by RR: Devdutt Padikkal.
Retained
Players retained, remaining purse and slots
Players retained by RR: Sanju Samson, Jos Buttler, Shimron Hetmyer, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag, Donovan Ferreira, Kunal Rathore, R Ashwin, Kuldeep Sen, Navdeep Saini, Sandeep Sharma, Trent Boult, Yuzvendra Chahal, Adam Zampa, and Prasidh Krishna.
RR now have a remaining purse of Rs. 14.50 crore for the impending IPL auction.
Slots available: 8 (3 overseas).
Next
What next for RR?
Like most of the franchises, RR have their core from the last season intact.
They have star batters in the form of Samson, Buttler, Hetmyer, Jaiswal, Jurel, and Parag.
They also have the bowling firepower in Boult, Chahal, Zampa, Prasidh, and R Ashwin among others.
However, the Royals boast limited options in terms of all-rounders. They could target a few overseas all-rounders.