Riyan Parag will lead Rajasthan Royals (RR) for his first three games in IPL 2025 with Captain Sanju Samson, who is recovering from a finger injury, ready to play as a batter until he cleared for Wicktkeeping and Field tasks.
Samson, who underwent fingers last month, joined the RR team on Monday after his rehabilitation at the Center for Excellence in Bangalore. It is likely to play as an impact submarine on the IPL, with DHRUV Jurel an option to keep the wickt. Jurel had also kept the Wickt instead of Samson in the fifth T20i against England in February after he was beaten on the finger by a delivery of Jofra Archer while hitting. Samson will return as a captain once, said an RR statement.
“I am not completely fit for three or more games,” Samson said in a video posted by the official RR mango on Instagram. “I think there are many leaders of this group. Since recent years, there have been great people who have taken care of this environment very well. But for the three games, Riyan will lead. He is well capable of doing so and I hope everyone is with him and supported him.”
Parag, meanwhile, will captain in the IPL for the first time and will be the fifth youngest to lead a team in the tournament. It has been part of RR since 2019 and was held by the franchise for INR 14 million rupees before the mega auction last year. In the IPL 2024, it ended with 573 races, as many by an RR batter and the third highest in general, and reached four media centers that even helped him win a debut T20i and Odi for India.
“Rajasthan Royals’s decision to deliver Captaincy to Riyan underlines the confidence of the franchise in her leadership, a skill that has demonstrated through her mandate as the domestic captain of Assam,” said a franchise statement. “Having been a crucial member of the configuration of the reais over the years, his understanding of the dynamics of the team makes him well equipped to participate in this role for the initial phase of the tournament.”
PARG will take charge in the inaugural match against Sunrisers Hyderabad on March 23, followed by the games at home in Guwahati against the defenders of Kolkata Knight Riders on March 26 and Chennai Super Kings on March 30. PARG won 10 of 17 games leading Assam in T20
cricket between 2021 and 2023, averaging 67.09 and ribbon in 167.72.72.
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