Team Rajasthan endured lackluster campaigns in the 2019 and 2020 editions of the Indian T20 League, thus inviting suggestions to revamp their strategy around the players.
The franchise, who have brought Kumar Sangakkara on board as the director of cricket, took everyone by surprise when they dropped Steve Smith from the captaincy and consequently, cut ties with the Australian.
Rajasthan, with a purse of Rs 37.85 crores, came with an agenda to sign up quality pacers and a rock-solid all-rounder to partner Ben Stokes in the middle. Little did anyone expect the team, which hasn’t enjoyed much success in the competition since their victory in the inaugural season, to break the bank to sign Chris Morris.
While we ask him for an actual photo in the jersey, here’s a trailer. ❤️#HallaBol | #RoyalsFamily | #IPL2021 | #IPLAuction | @Mustafiz90 pic.twitter.com/f7izobImW0
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) February 18, 2021
The Sanju Samson-led side also secured the services of Bangladesh’s Mustafizur Rahman, who returns to the Indian T20 League after a two-year absence. Shivam Dube, who made his debut with Bangalore and was released earlier this year, was signed for Rs.4.4 crore after bidding started at a base price of Rs.50 lakhs.
The list of players released by Delhi are Steve Smith, Akash Singh, Anirudha Joshi, Ankit Rajpoot, Oshane Thomas, Shashank Singh, Tom Curran, Varun Aaron.
Players Bought: Chris Morris - Rs 16.25 crores, Tom Curran - Rs 5,25 crores, Shivam Dube - Rs 4.40 crores, Chetan Sakariya - Rs 1.2 crore, Mustafizur Rahman - Rs 1 crore, Liam Livingstone - Rs 75 lakh, KC Cariappa - Rs 20 lakh, Kuldip Yadav - Rs 20 lakh, Akash Singh - Rs 20 lakh
Full Squad: Sanju Samson (captain & wicketkeeper), Jos Buttler (wicketkeeper), 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
Feature image courtesy: AFP / Xavier Galiana
