Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra feels that Shubam Dubey is a fantastic addition for the Rajasthan Royals (RR) as a lower-middle-order batter heading into the 2024 season of the Indian Premier League. Sanju Samson-led side brought the Vidharbha batter for 5.80 crore at the auction last month.
The 29-year-old had a stellar season in the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He scored 222 runs in seven matches at an astonishing strike rate of 187.28 and an average of 73.76. The Delhi Capitals started a bid for Dubey at his starting price of Rs. 20 lakh, while Rajasthan Royals went hard to get him for 5.80 crore.
On his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra hailed Rajasthan Royals team management for signing Rovman Powell and Shubam Dubey with the sole purpose of bolstering their lower-middle order and believes that Vidarbha batter can hit long boundaries in the shorter format of the game.
“They went with an extremely clear strategy into the auction, that they need batters who can bat down the order. For that, they first started bidding for Rovman Powell, who interestingly enough came in the first set, and they went after him. They said they needed him. I liked the clarity.”
“They didn’t stop there. It wasn’t easy to buy an Indian finisher in this auction. Shubham Dubey, Shahrukh Khan, and Kumar Kushagra were the options. They tried their best and acquired Shubham Dubey. He is a left-hander who has come from tennis-ball cricket. He can tonk the ball properly,” Aakash Chopra said.
West Indies skipper Rovman Powell might fill the role of Rajasthan Royals finisher alongside Shimron Hetymer. He could be their best option at number five or six as he can take bowlers to the cleaners in the game’s last overs. Meanwhile, Shubam Dubey, along with Riyan Parag and Dhruv Jurel, might also be employed in the lower-middle order.
Rajasthan Royals Could Not Crack The Impact Player Rule – Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra feels that Rajasthan Royals failed to effectively use the Impact Player rule in IPL 2023 and that the Royals lacked depth in both the batting and bowling areas. The Royals would be keen on using the rule to their favour in the forthcoming season of the cash-rich league.
“Rajasthan, for a very strange reason, although they are a team that lays a lot of emphasis on analytics, a lot of people say that they can make their XI based on numbers, but despite that, they just could not crack the Impact Player rule.”
“They used to have only five bowlers and six batters. Every team had a batter at No. 7 and an extra bowler but their team didn’t used to have one, and even if there was one, they weren’t able to use him properly. It was baffling,” Aakash Chopra added.
Rajasthan Royals spent heavily on Rovman Powell (7.40 crore) and Shubham Dubey (5.80 crore) in the 2024 auction. Emerging South African pacer Nandre Burger was purchased at auction by the Royals for his original price of 50 lakh. Their other two signings were Tom Kohler-Cadmore (40 lakh) and Abid Mushtaq (20 lakh).
