3 biggest reasons behind RR's struggles in IPL 2023

The Rajasthan Royals (RR) commenced their 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) in excellent fashion, winning four of their first five matches to surge to the top of the standings.

However, with only one game remaining in the league phase, Sanju Samson and Co. find themselves in a terrible place. With six wins from 13 matches, the Royals are placed sixth and are almost out of the playoff race. They need to significantly improve their net run rate and hope that other results go their way to finish in the top four.

Ahead of the season, few could've expected the direction in which RR's campaign would head. Even halfway through the league phase, they were among the favorites to go all the way. How has it gone so horribly wrong?

Here are the three biggest reasons behind RR's struggles in IPL 2023.

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#3 RR have barely any quality all-rounders

Most of RR's batters can't contribute with the ball

This was one of RR's biggest problems in IPL 2022. They had barely any players who could bridge the gap between the batting and the bowling departments, despite which they reached the final on the back of some sensational individual seasons.

This time around, Rajasthan had two factors in their favor. One was the smart acquisition of Jason Holder at the auction, and the other was the emergence of young domestic all-rounders like Riyan Parag and Akash Vashisht who could contribute in both departments.

However, that hasn't been the case at all. Holder was used very poorly before being dropped from the side, while Parag failed to deliver and suffered the same fate as the West Indian. The likes of Vashisht, meanwhile, haven't gotten any opportunities.

The end result has been that RR have had barely any quality all-rounders in their side. They've also not made things easy for themselves otherwise...

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#2 The Royals haven't used the impact player rule effectively

Dhruv Jurel has been used in the lower-middle order as a finisher

The impact of all-rounders has decreased in IPL 2023, largely due to the impact player rule. Teams can now afford to play an additional specialist or two at the expense of an all-rounder, but RR haven't tapped into that provision at all.

The Royals have often opted to go in with just five specialist bowlers, leaving them with no leeway in that department. More bizarrely, they've refused to embrace the additional buffer of an impact player, often not giving themselves any flexibility in either section.

Kuldeep Sen, Navdeep Saini, Kuldip Yadav, Murugan Ashwin, and Abdul Basith are among those who have been given only one or two opportunities as the impact player. The more regular ones, like Devdutt Padikkal and Parag, have been used in a variety of ways.

RR had the opportunity to fill their all-rounder hole with smart usage of impact players, but they have failed miserably in that regard.

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#1 Key players have failed to deliver in IPL 2023

Jos Buttler and Yuzvendra Chahal have been inconsistent with bat and ball respectively

If RR have such holes on their roster, how did they reach the final of IPL 2022? Well, that was largely due to two all-time great seasons from Jos Buttler and Yuzvendra Chahal.

Buttler raced away to the Orange Cap, while Chahal resisted competition from Wanindu Hasaranga to claim the Purple Cap. Apart from the star duo, the likes of Sanju Samson and Shimron Hetmyer came up with meaningful contributions throughout the season.

However, in IPL 2023, things have been different. Buttler has struggled for form, while Chahal has had long periods of inconsistency. Prasidh Krishna, who was one of their premier bowlers last year, has missed the campaign with an injury. Samson and Hetmyer, meanwhile, have failed far too often for the team's liking.

The lack of production from their star players, combined with the fresher faces (barring Yashasvi Jaiswal) not stepping up, has greatly hurt RR this season.