3 reasons why RR might struggle to make the playoffs of IPL 2023 after loss to GT

The Gujarat Titans (GT) crushed the Rajasthan Royals (RR) by nine wickets in Jaipur. With the result, GT asserted their dominance at the top of the table while RR remained fourth.

Batting first, RR were bowled out for 118 in just 17.5 overs. The only RR batter that seemed to be comfortable in the middle was captain Sanju Samson (30 runs off 20 balls), who later fell to Joshua Little. The pick of the bowlers for GT were Rashid Khan (4 - 0 - 14 - 3) and Noor Ahmad (3 - 0 - 25 - 2).

In reply, GT were off to a solid start with openers Shubman Gill (36 runs off 35 balls) and Wriddhiman Saha (41* runs off 34 balls).

After Gill's dismissal, captain Hardik Pandya (39* runs off 15 balls) sealed the game for the team with more than six overs to spare.

The biggest positive for GT was Pandya's return to form as he at his swashbuckling best, smashing three fours and as many sixes in his whirlwind knock. For RR on the other hand, there are a lot of worries as they seem to be losing the momentum they had in the first half of the competition.

On that note, let us discuss three reasons why RR might struggle to make the Playoffs of IPL 2023.

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#1 Current Form

RR has lost four out of their last five matches. Having won the first four out of their five matches, RR easily looked one of the top sides in the competition.

However, in the last few games, they seem to have misfired in both departments. RR's ability to close matches from winning positions against LSG and MI have raised concerns that they choke under pressure.

The sheer enormity of the defeat in a game at home will be a huge blow to the confidence within the RR camp. As they play their next match tomorrow, the side will find it difficult to regroup, recover and put in a better performance against SRH on Sunday.

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#2 Intense Competition in the league

This edition of the IPL has by far been the most competitive one. With all teams having played at least nine matches in the league, none of them have yet been knocked out. The unpredictable nature of the tournament is such that bottom-placed DC prevented first-placed GT from chasing down a low target of 131.

GT are the only side that are sitting comfortably at the moment with seven wins out of their first 10 games. On the other hand, six teams have won five games and are sitting with either 10 or 11 points in their tally.

In such an intensely competitive and unpredictable league, even the smallest of mistakes by teams can knock them out of the competition.

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#3 Struggles of RR batting line-up

RR have relied heavily on the opening pair of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Jos Butler in their batting efforts. However, even Jos Butler, who had an excellent start at the beginning of the tournament has struggled for runs in his last few outings.

The middle-order comprising Sanju Samson, Shimron Hetmyer and Devdutt Padikkal have all struggled for form of late. Dhruv Jurel has been impressive with the bat this season but he comes in too late to have any major impact on the match other than providing a few lusty blows at the end of the RR innings.

RR's batting weakness has been evident in the last couple of games. Against MI they did manage to put up a total in excess of 200, largely based on Jaiswal's massive ton with no contributions from any other batter. While yesterday, none of the batters managed to stay on the crease for long resulting in their side being bowled below 120 runs.