Skipper Riyan Parag’s modest returns across the first eight IPL matches are not a major worry for Vikram Rathour, with the Rajasthan Royals batting coach expressing confidence that the Assam batter will eventually find form as the tournament progresses.
Despite questions over his appointment as captain — especially with established India players like Yashasvi Jaiswal and Dhruv Jurel in the squad — Parag has scored only 88 runs in eight outings, struggling with a low strike rate of 112.82 and a highest score of just 20.
“There is nothing going wrong with him. He is batting well in the nets. He is putting in the effort,” Rathour, the former India batting coach, said while addressing the media.
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Parag’s numbers look even more underwhelming compared to the strong contributions from Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (357 runs at a strike rate above 234), Jaiswal (255 at 153), and Jurel (232 at over 130), who have shouldered most of Rajasthan Royals’ batting responsibility so far.
His struggles are further highlighted by the fact that he trails behind Ravindra Jadeja (132 runs) and Donovan Ferreira (130 runs) in overall output this season.
In Saturday’s match, Parag fell to a sharp yorker from Pat Cummins, who drove a fast delivery into the base of the stumps. The Assam batter couldn’t bring his bat down in time, exposing a technical lapse.
“That’s just how the game goes at times. You go through phases where runs don’t come as freely as you’d like. It’s part of cricket,” Rathour explained. “He will bounce back, and I believe he will come back strongly.”
“We’ve been in regular one-on-one discussions. His form is something we’ve been monitoring closely, and we’ve had plenty of conversations around it,” he added.
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