Rajasthan Royals have had to face the problem of shortage of cricketers. While Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes were ruled out due to injury, Andrew Tye and Liam Livingstone have pulled out of the competition. Hence, they must make use of the mid-season transfer window that is now open.
At the moment, the Royals are struggling to pose a challenge in the middle-order. Jos Buttler is also not firing, which is further not helping the franchise. Hence, there is plenty of scope for the franchise to make use of the mid-season transfer window of IPL 2021. In this article, we take a look at five players whom they can target.
1. Robin Uthappa
Robin Uthappa is not being used at CSK this season. Unless there are any injuries, as things stand, Uthappa is unlikely to get a game this season. This is unfortunate, considering the player was in good form. Nevertheless, the Royals can target him so that their batting unit can become stronger. The opening has been an issue for them this season, and with a player like Robin at the top, a lot of issues can be resolved. He was anyways in the franchise last season and will not take much time to get used to the atmosphere.
2. Sam Billings
Sam Billings is a top T20 cricketer, which IPL franchises are somehow not being able to make use of. At Delhi Capitals, he has not featured much this season. With Steve Smith and Shimron Hetmyer above him in the pecking order, he could go without a game in the remaining part of the campaign. Therefore, Rajasthan must target him in the mid-season transfer window. This way, their middle-order will get a boost and can be assured of another match-winner apart from Jos Buttler and Sanju Samson.
3. N Jagadeesan
Apart from Sanju Samson, no other domestic batsman has played a part in RR’s success so far. If the franchise has to go further, this is one aspect they can think of boosting. N Jagadeesan has been in good form but is not getting game-time at CSK. At RR, though, the Tamil Nadu player can assure himself of a position. He is someone who is calm and composed, an attribute that could help the franchise tackle the difficult situation now.
4. Mandeep Singh
With Shahrukh Khan and Deepak Hooda batting well, Punjab Kings may not make any changes to their domestic middle-order this season. Hence, the likes of Prabhsimran Singh, Mandeep Singh and Sarfraz Khan could fail to get a game. Mandeep is an experienced professional and would add value to the Rajasthan outfit. He can play both as an opener and in the middle-order. His versatility has been on display in recent seasons, and Rajasthan should target this in the mid-season transfer window.
5. James Neesham
The ruling out of Ben Stokes has severely affected the balance of the playing XI. James Neesham is sitting idle in Mumbai Indians and could be a good candidate to replace the Englishman at Rajasthan Royals. With an extra bowling option in place, RR can afford to rest Mustafizur and play an Indian pacer or spinner like Kartik Tyagi or Shreyas Gopal. The arrival of Neesham would help Rajasthan considerably.
