Kumar Sangakkara, Rajasthan Royals’ Director of Cricket, said that both Sanju Samson and Rahul Tewatia have the capability of setting the stage on fire as the duo has great talent.
Rajasthan Royals’ Director of Cricket Kumar Sangakkara heaped rich praise on captain Sanju Samson and all-rounder Rahul Tewatia, saying both Rajasthan Royals players have the capability of setting the stage on fire as the duo has great talent.
Kumar Sangakkara: Both Sanju Samson And Rahul Tewatia Are Outstanding Performers
Rajasthan Royals will open their IPL 2021 campaign against Punjab Kings in their fourth match of the IPL 2021 on Monday at the Wankhede Stadium. Earlier this year, the Rajasthan Royals let go of Steve Smith and appointed Sanju Samson as the skipper of their side with Kumar Sangakkara been roped in as Director of Cricket.
“The pressure is always there, you can try and forget about it. But the reality is I think Sanju and all the players will always tell you that the expectation and pressure are always there.
“There are various coping mechanisms and little techniques you used to deal with them to let you focus at the moment. It is really important to have that grand ambition of playing regular international cricket,” Kumar Sangakkara said during a virtual press conference on Sunday.
“Both Sanju and Rahul are capable of not just being regulars, but great and outstanding performers on the international stage. They have an amazing ability, great cricketing sense, and both of them over the years have really progressed.
“Sanju has been a young batting superstar in the Indian scene for a long time, but the real key is to understand that there is a process to achieve that ambition and to take it to match by match. Each innings you play in the IPL, the focus should be on that. It is important that both Samson and Rahul have the trust of the team,” Kumar Sangakkara added.
Rajasthan Royals finished last season at the bottom of the table with 12 points from their 14 matches. But at IPL 2021 auction, Rajasthan Royals went big, spending Rs 24.20 crore on buying players. South Africa all-rounder Chris Morris was snapped up by the franchise at Rs 16.25 crore, becoming the most expensive player in the history of IPL.
Rahul Tewatia was undoubtedly impressive lower down the order and punched well above his weight, as he finished IPL 2020 as the only Indian player with 10+ wickets and 250+ runs. Sanju Samson amassed 375 runs averaging 28.84 with 3 fifties.
Kumar Sangakkara: ECB Had Confirmed Jofra Archer Will Miss Initial Part Of IPL 2021 Due To Injury
Kumar Sangakkara has played 134 Tests and 404 ODIs during an illustrious career. Jofra Archer was the Most Valuable Player Of The Tournament but will miss the initial 4-5 games for RR. Jofra Archer was ruled out of England’s one-day series against India and will also miss at least the start of the Indian Premier League due to his ongoing elbow injury.
“We have a lot of match-winners, not just English specific. With Sanju Samson, Rahul Tewatia, and our fast bowlers, and the key is to have different players who can do something special on the day. Everyone is looking forward to starting the tournament.
“Earlier this year, England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) management confirmed that pacer Jofra Archer would be missing the initial part of IPL 2021 due to an injury. The pacer recently underwent surgery and is currently going through his rehab,” Kumar Sangakkara further added.
Steve Smith was released by the Rajasthan Royals franchise ahead of the IPL 2021 auction. Steve Smith who took charge from Ajinkya Rahane in the middle of the season in 2019 failed to live up to his expectations scoring 311 runs averaging only 25.91 with 3 fifties in IPL 2020. Sanju Samson was named as the new captain of Rajasthan Royals.
Punjab Kings: KL Rahul (c & wk), Mayank Agarwal, Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran, Shahrukh Khan, Deepak Hooda, Chris Jordan, Jhye Richardson, Mohammed Shami, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh
Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Sanju Samson, Riyan Parag, Shivam Dube, Rahul Tewatia, Chris Morris, Shreyas Gopal, Andrew Tye, Kartik Tyagi