3 strategic changes which Rajasthan Royals should make to improve their performance

Rajasthan Royals is a team which is making a comeback into the Indian Premier League after a gap of two years. The team didn't have a great first game in this year's tournament as the Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated them comprehensively in Hyderabad.

The Royals made a royal comeback in the second game against the Delhi Daredevils. The team played its first game in Jaipur after a gap of 4 years and managed to scrape out to a victory for the home crowd in a rain-curtailed match.

Ajinkya Rahane is the captain of Rajasthan this year in the absence of Steve Smith and he has been facing a number of issues with his team. He would be looking to change a few things to get his team to perform at the level they are capable of.

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#3 Use spinners in powerplay overs

Gopal could be used in the powerplay overs

Spinners in IPL are the biggest match winners for any team. Leg spinners, in particular, are of immense importance and Rajasthan has got two of them in their playing 11. Krishnappa Gowtham and Shreyas Gopal both are quality spinners who find a place in the team.

Shreyas Gopal, in particular, seems to be an impressive option for Rahane to ponder upon in the powerplay overs. IPL's history has always shown us that using spinners in powerplay has proved to be an effective option in both reducing the run rate as well as in picking up important wickets.

Ashwin in CSK, Narine in KKR and Washington in Rising Pune Supergiant all performed this role to perfection and were the main reasons behind their sides performing well in IPL in those years. Gopal is an attacking leg-spinner who could be used as a wicket-taking option.

In Rajasthan's first match against Hyderabad, the team gave away too many runs in the powerplay without picking many wickets. Spinners might give away few runs but they will certainly pick wickets as well.

#2 Include Jofra Archer in the team

Archer might play his first game against Bangalore

Jofra Archer was the star of the Big Bash League this year. He performed brilliantly for the Adelaide Strikers last year and was picked in the IPL auctions for a huge price on the basis of those performances.

Rajasthan bought him for a huge price but have been hesitant in playing him in the 11. Archer is a quality all-rounder who would add strength to any team he plays for. Rajasthan has been struggling in picking wickets at regular intervals and he could help the team in that aspect.

Another area where the team has struggled is with finishing the innings with the bat. Archer is a great striker of the ball and will be a great value addition in the death overs with the bat. He is also a death overs specialist with the ball and would be extremely useful in crunch situations. He is a must in the playing 11 for the Rajasthan Royals

#1 Alter the batting order

Tripathi was highly successful as an opener in Pune last year

One aspect of the game where Rajasthan Royals seems to be struggling is in getting their batting order right. The team management seems to have got their batting order wrong and this has affected the team's most prized asset - their batting.

Rajasthan has one of the best batting line-ups in IPL if used properly, but the team has chosen to put players in positions where they aren't comfortable. Rahul Tripathi was a huge success for the Rising Pune Supergiant last year at the opening position but he has been demoted to number 6 for the Royals.

Tripathi seems to be struggling with finishing the innings at while Stokes is struggling to anchor the innings at number 3 and a reversal of roles could give both these players the much-needed success.

Tripathi, Rahane and Samson are great timers of the ball whereas the likes of Short, Buttler and Stokes are big hitters of the ball. It would serve the team right if they use Tripathi, Samson and Rahane in the top 3 positions and finish the innings with Short, Butler and Stokes.

Royals should open the innings with Rahane and Tripathi and have Samson coming in at one down. Short, Buttler and Stokes can be used as middle or lower order batsmen for the Rajasthan Royals.