No Positions available says Justin Langer responding to Steve Smith's captaincy ambitions

IPL 2021 | Team Preview: With new leader, RR seek to turnaround reign

Rich in traditions, richer and more popular for its history, Rajasthan is one of the states in the country that is a paradise for historians and archeologists. The culture intrigues an individual so much that you want to know more and more about it. But does the Rajasthan-based IPL franchise team Rajasthan Royals attract the same amount of interest for cricket lovers or the pundits? Well, whether for good or for bad, but YES it does. You talk about the inaugural tournament win, you talk about the spot-fixing scandal and the ban and you talk about the inconsistency. But you do talk about this team. However, the question that pops up here is whether a team that plays the sport can ever be satisfied with just being a topic of discussion and not being a part of the history books for good? Surely NOT. The side has featured in eight seasons since their successful triumph in the first edition but has failed to leave a mark. A lot needs to be changed and a lot needs to be tweaked if the franchise has to live up to the name of the state it represents. The RR team hasn’t had some major success in the IPL except for the one trophy that they have in the cabinet. But as they say you can’t change your past but can learn from the experiences. The team needs to work on this mantra when they go and battle it out in the IPL 2021. With some new faces in the ranks, RR need to rub-off the past and produce some impactful performances in the forthcoming season of the IPL. The franchise has already taken some bold steps and one of them was releasing the Australia batsman Steve Smith ahead of the mini auctions held in Chennai in February. Moreover, the Rajasthan franchise handed the captain’s hat to wicket-keeper batsman Sanju Samson. Ride on all-rounders to prosper Despite retaining Ben Stokes and Rahul Tewatia in the line up, Rajasthan Royals went after two more all-rounders, Chris Morris and Shivam Dube. They didn’t just buy Morris but made him the costliest pick ever in the history of IPL auctions. The South African all-rounder went to the team for a sum of Rs. 16.25 Cr. RR also made a hefty amount to buy Dube who was earlier released by RCB. The Royals paid Rs 4 Cr to add Dube in their line up. Stokes and Dube can now be the two options for RR who can bat in the middle order and can also chip in with four overs. Morris on the other side is an efficient fast bowler with some good line, length and speed and has the ability to bat in the lower middle order. Spinner Tewatia would be the fourth option who might get a chance to play in the XI. We have seen his hard hitting ability in the last edition’s IPL while the Haryana player can also chip in with some overs. FULL SQUAD: Sanju Samson (c & wk), Jos Buttler (wk), Ben Stokes, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Manan Vohra, Anuj Rawat, Riyan Parag, David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Mahipal Lomror, Shreyas Gopal, Mayank Markande, Jofra Archer, Andrew Tye, Jaydev Unadkat, Kartik Tyagi, Shivam Dube, Chris Morris, Mustafizur Rahman, Chetan Sakariya, KC Cariappa, Liam Livingstone, Kuldip Yadav, Akash Singh SUPPORT STAFF Director of cricket: Kumar Sangakkara, Lead assistant coach: Trevor Penney, Batting coaches: Amol Muzumdar, Sid Lahiri, Fast bowling coach: Rob Cassell, Fast bowling development coach: Steffan Jones, Spin bowling coach: Sairaj Bahutule Spin bowling consultant: Ish Sodhi Batsmen with hostile batting style From Jos Buttler to David Miller and from Ben Stokes to Shivam Dube, Rajasthan Royals certainly have a line up that comprises the batsmen that can fetch runs pretty quickly at any given stage of the game. Recently, we saw Stokes hammered the Indian bowlers all around the park during the second ODI in Pune where he scored 99 runs in a winning cause batting at number three. England's decision of making Stokes bat at number three especially in absence of injured captain Eoin Morgan has opened gates for RR to give a thought to this approach and have the left-hander bat at the position. Stokes’ batting abilities and capability of scoring runs at a brisk pace can prove a nightmare for the opposition bowling attack. Talking about the middle order, the Rajasthan team has a pretty sorted middle order. The only problem they will face would be having plenty. With batsmen like Miller, captain Sanju Samson, Riyan Parag, Tewatia, Liam Livingstone, Dube and also Morris there, the Royals won’t find it much difficult to create a strong middle order batting line up. But with Steve Smith and Robin Uthappa out of the team, RR need to have an extra opening option apart from Yashasvi Jaiswal who was retained ahead of the mini auctions and Buttler. Manan Vohra can be one man who can step up to provide his services in this position if required. Vohra who has been a part of the RCB in the earlier seasons also has the experience of batting at the opening slot. Packed bowling attack England pacer Jofra Archer’s participation in the IPL 2021 is under dark clouds after he sustained injury during the India tour. But Jofra’s absence wouldn’t really create much of a stress for RR management as they have Andrew Tye as a like for like replacement while the RR fast bowling is well equipped with Kartik Tyagi, Jaydev Unadkat, Morris, Dube, Stokes, Sakariya, Mustafizur Rahman and Akash Singh in the team. With Tyagi, Undakat, Morris being the first choice pacers for the franchise, it would be difficult for Tye to find a place for himself in the XI. Rajasthan Royals are probably the first team with a bulk of leg-spinners in their ranks. Shreyas Gopal has been a regular in the RR line up while they also have Tewatia in the unit. Tewatia can emerge to be a useful option as he can also score a few quick runs in the middle and death overs. Markande and Cariappa are the two other leg spinners who might find a place for themselves in the XI. RR would be reluctant to play more than one main spinner in the whole tournament because they will be playing in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Bengaluru. Out of these, Delhi and Kolkata are probably the venues that can be helpful for the leggies. They will play seven matches in total at these two venues. Neutral venues- A Boon or Curse? Rajasthan Royals will begin the campaign for the IPL 2021 in Mumbai against Punjab Kings on April 12 and will play five matches in the city. Mumbai will offer the tracks where the ball comes on to the bat while the pacers can get some advantage if they have the ability to create problems for the batsmen. So, with the kind of batting unit that the RR have, they can be pretty dominant with the bat. Talking about their bowling at this particular venue, Morris and Kartik Tyagi can be the two bowlers who can rattle the opposition with their pace. The Rajasthan team will then move to Delhi and Kolkata. Both the venues might have something for the spinners while the city of Kolkata can also have something to offer to the pacers. The team will then play in Bangalore which can turn out to be a paradise for the RR batsmen. Moreover, RR have a number of left-handed batsmen in their team which makes it easier for them to tackle the spinners especially leg spinners. What are the chances? Well, looking at the past records, RR would surely want to turn the fortunes for themselves. They have a strong and aggressive batting line up with a lethal fast and spin bowling unit in the arsenal. Nevertheless, the chances can only be judged after the initial part of the competition is over. PROBABLE XI Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson (C & WK), Ben Stokes, Shivam Dube, Riyan Parag, Rahul Tewatia, Chris Morris, Shreyas Gopal, Jaydev Unadkat, Kartik Tagi

IPL 2021: Chris Morris excited to lead the pace bowling cartel of Rajasthan Royals

South African fast bowling all-rounder Chris Morris made history during the mini IPL Auctions when he fetched the highest amount in any IPL Auction till date. He was snapped up by the Rajasthan Royals at a whopping price of Rs 16.25 crores and the tall fast bowler is looking forward to leading the Rajasthan Royals pace cartel in the absence of Jofra Archer. Despite the added responsibilities for Morris, he feels that it won’t change his role in the team. The absence of Jofra Archer will surely be a huge void to fill. Archer has been their spearhead in the last two seasons and has weaved his magic with the ball. An elbow injury sustained during the recently concluded England tour of India has ruled him out of the entirety of the competition. In his absence, Chris Morris will lead the attack and will play an instrumental role if Rajasthan harbours hopes of repeating their heroics from the inaugural year. “Every single team that I have played in the IPL, my role has been with the new ball and at the death. That doesn’t really change. I have always had fast bowlers in the team and I’ve been there supporting act,” Morris was quoted as saying during a virtual press conference. “It won’t be a new role if I am leading an attack, won’t be new if I am supporting. There is a little bit of responsibility when it comes to leading the attack. But like I said, since it wouldn’t be able to be alien to me,” he added. There is no doubt about the fact that Morris will be under some sport of pressure because of the price tag. Not even an Indian player has fetched this gigantic amount in any of the auctions. Speaking on the same, Morris said that he will feel a few butterflies in his stomach but this is not the first time when he has fetched a big sum in the auctions. “I think it’s natural to have a little bit of pressure when something like that has happened. I’d be lying to you if there wasn’t any pressure but fortunately enough in the past, I have been coming in with quite a big price tag on my head. At the end of the day, you need to perform, no matter what the price tag is.” Meanwhile, the all-rounder feels that his role in the team if different to that of Ben Stokes who is a magician on the field. The southpaw can do freakish things on the cricket field and Morris said that facing them as a dup will be quite an interesting challenge for their opponents. “I think we have got different roles Stokes opens the batting. He is one of the best in the world if not the best. My role is to finish off games with the bat which I hope I can do more of this year. With the ball it’s different I think he bowled a lot less in the IPL last year than he did in the previous years. But the guy has got the magic touch when it comes to cricket. So, you know, if we feeding off each other in our different roles on the team, you know, I think we could be quite a quite an interesting duo to come up against,” Morris said. Sanju Samson has been named as the new captain of the Rajasthan Royals and Morris has shared the dressing with Samson before. Morris is of the opinion being a youngster and someone who also keeps wicket and fields will have a lot to offer while leading the side. “I’m obviously quite lucky I’ve got a very good relationship with Sanju, I have batted with him at Rajasthan and in Delhi. I don’t see him a young captain I see him as a seriously good cricket player, who’s got a great cricket brain. For a guy who can keep wickets and field, he’s seen different angles, different approaches from the back and the side. So, you know, I’m sure it’s got some good ideas, I’m sure it’s got some interesting things that we can discuss when it comes to tactics and to what the plans are.” Morris said that it’s always a confidence booster for him individually to see so many teams trying to buy him the auctions. “I didn’t expect to be bought for that much and so many teams to employ my services. It’s humbling, I never thought I’d be playing these many IPLs.” Morris ended his virtual press conference by stating that their main goal now is to win the tournament which has been eluding them since their historic victory in the inaugural edition. “Whether T20 World Cup or not it’s going to be a very important season. Your main focus is to win the IPL. It’s the second biggest trophy, if not the biggest in the year without a World Cup, you want to win as a domestic cricketer,” Morris concluded.

Clinical Blackcaps clinch T20I series against listless Bangladesh amid chaos over D/L method

New Zealand defeated Bangladesh in the second T20I at McLaren Park in Napier to clinch the series with one game remaining. Bangladesh were chasing a revised target of 170 runs from 16 overs in a rain-curtailed match, but they could muster only 142 runs with the loss of seven wickets and faced another series defeat after losing the ODI series 0-3. Mohammad Naim and Soumya Sarkar tried their best to keep Bangladesh in the game and they were well on their way to push their side closer to the target by halfway stage. But, as soon as they fell in a span of two overs, Bangladesh batting collapsed and the hosts bowling line up squeezed them to register a big win. More to follow

Coach Misbah-ul-Haq confident of Pakistan's chances on 'true' pitches in South Africa

Pakistan team has not had the best of times touring in the recent past and the upcoming tour of South Africa will be another steep one for them. However, head coach Misabh -ul-Haq is not losing his sleep over the fortunes of his team in the ODI and T20 series against the hosts. Speaking about the preparations for the tour, Misbah exuded confidence in the technique of Pakistan batsmen and said that players such as Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, and Babar Azam have gained significant experience of playing in South Africa. The latest entrant into the Pakistan batting line up—Mohammed Rizwan has tasted huge success in the recent past, both in Pakistan and on away tours, and hence Misbah said that Pakistan will have a batting line up that relishes the prospect of batting on backfoot. "As a batsman, you enjoy that, you get full value for your shots. Previously, in this team, some of the players have played here and performed - Imam, Babar, Fakhar was here. These players love that pace and bounce, now Rizwan is in form, a very good backfoot player. Those previous series and experiences definitely count, they play a role in your confidence as a player and team. When I was playing, suddenly, you just went to a ground where you've performed and your confidence level was always different,” Misbah said on Monday. Pakistan will be playing all their matches against South Africa in Centurion and Wanderers where the pitches support the pace and carry and help batsmen in stroke-making. He said that batsmen will find it easier to adjust to the pace and bounce and will enjoy batting on such wickets, while pacers can also extract help from the surface to surprise the hosts. "I think especially with white-ball cricket, the pitches are very good, they're true pitches, with good bounce and pace and for batters," he said on Monday. "In white-ball cricket, it is easier to adjust to these conditions and you get good value for shots. Obviously, Pakistan has also always had the luxury of good fast bowlers. That is the reason Pakistan has done well here,” Misbah added. Pakistan have had success on their previous tours of South Africa and went on to win the ODI series against the hosts in 2013-14. They have an impressive win-loss ratio of 6-7 against South Africa in their home conditions since 2013-14 and hence Misbah is quite confident in the prospects of the team before the start of the ODI series.