IPL 2018 : 5 Key Indian players for the Rajasthan Royals

IPL 2018 will witness the return of two popular franchises -The Rajasthan Royals and The Chennai Super Kings after a hiatus of two years. Cricket enthusiasts are intrigued by the prospect of watching them play as they are known to play a refreshing brand of cricket in the league.

Rajasthan Royals emphatically won the inaugural edition of the IPL in 2008. The franchise is known to invest quite heavily in young Indian talent and this has been the feature of their campaign in every edition of the IPL that they have been a part of.

However, in the player auction for this year's IPL, we saw a change in approach from the management of the Royals. They went all out to sign some big-name foreign players at a hefty price.

Still, they have a quality bunch of Indian players in their squad for IPL 2018 who, on their day, can win matches on their own. Here, we look at five such players :

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#1 Jaydev Unadkat

Jaydev Unadkat is one of the most improved players in recent times. He has added many dimensions to his bowling and is quite deceptive with all his variations. He impressed one and all with his performances in IPL 2017 for the Pune outfit.

He displayed immense calmness under high-pressure situations and also took wickets at crucial stages. These stellar performances earned him a lucrative contract with the Rajasthan Royals for IPL 2018 as the franchise bought him for a staggering amount of Rs 11.5 crore.

Unadkat will be extremely crucial for the Royals as he is a seasoned T20 bowler and his variations will be handy to stem the flow of runs. He can also be useful with the new ball by picking up some early wickets.

He has played 47 games so far in the IPL and has 56 wickets to his name at an economy rate of 8.00 runs per over. He has best figures of five wickets for 25 runs which shows that he is a wicket taker as well.

#2 Sanju Samson

Samson is back with the Rajasthan Royals

Sanju Samson was brought into prominence by some squash-buckling innings that the right-hander played for the Rajasthan Royals in his first two seasons for the franchise. However, he was not able to repeat the same kind of performances in the subsequent seasons of the IPL and quite frequently threw his wicket away after getting off to flying starts.

He is an excellent timer of the cricket ball and it is a joy to watch him bat when he is in full flow. He plays some outrageous strokes with ease mainly due to the strong hand-eye coordination that he possesses.

The Royals will be hoping that he replicates the efforts of his initial seasons of the IPL as his good run of form would mean that RR would have a balanced middle order. He can also play the role of a wicket-keeper and this would enable the team to have a better composition of foreign players in the final eleven.

Samson has featured in 66 matches in the IPL in which he has scored 1426 runs at a strike rate of 124.43. He also has 12 half centuries and a solitary century to his name. He has held on to 34 catches and has affected three stumpings in total in the league.

#3 Rahul Tripathi

Rahul has to prove that he is not 'a one season wonder'

Another young Indian batsman to watch out for in IPL 2018 is Rahul Tripathi. The flamboyant right-hander amazed everybody with his wide range of stroke-making in IPL 2017 for the Rising Pune Supergiant and played a pivotal role in their campaign that was rather successful.

He is a dynamic batsman who is equally destructive against both spin and pace and he is not afraid to use his feet. He specializes in scoring at a brisk rate by playing conventional strokes but hitting big sixes is not alien to him either.

Tripathi was signed by the Rajasthan Royals for IPL 2018 and he will be hoping to reproduce his exploits from the previous season of the IPL. He will be critical at the top of the order for the Royals and good performances from him would mean that the team will get off to some brisk starts. He will be useful in effectively utilizing the power play overs.

He has played in just one season of the IPL in which he featured in 14 matches and scored 391 runs at a strike of 146.44, his highest score being 93. In the 14 games that he played, he scored two half-centuries as well.

#4 Dhawal Kulkarni

Dhawal Kulkarni will lead the pace attack for the Royals

Dhawal Kulkarni, the talented speedster, will be very crucial for the Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2018. He has been around a long time now and is a seasoned professional in T20 cricket. Just like many other Indian players, Kulkarni rose to prominence while playing for the Rajasthan Royals.

He is best known for his spells upfront for the Gujrat Lions. He has a lovely outswinger that swings late and his steady lines and lengths concern the batsmen quite often. He is a genuine wicket taker with the new ball but he is quite handy at the death as well.

Kulkarni will have a tough job of leading the Rajasthan new ball attack in IPL 2018 as he is experienced and is quite familiar with the nature of Indian pitches. Hence, he is immensely critical for the Rajasthan franchise to execute their plans.

Kulkarni has an impressive record in the IPL. He has picked up 75 wickets in the 72 matches that he has played in the league. He has an economy rate of 7.96 runs per over and an impressive average of 24.74.

#5 Ajinkya Rahane

Can Rahane lead RR to another IPL glory?

Ajinkya Rahane will have the added responsibility of leading the Rajasthan Royal in IPL 2018 since Steve Smith won't feature in the tournament. The stylish right-hander will look to lead the Rajasthan Royals to another IPL glory.

Rahane shined in the blue of the Rajasthan Royals and was quite prolific while playing for them in the past seasons.

He is back with them for IPL 2018 and will probably feature at the top of the batting order for them.He is a class player who finds gaps in the field and makes stroke making look ridiculously easy. He is quite efficient in playing horizontal bat strokes and they are his go-to option.

Perhaps he is most crucial for the Rajasthan franchise this season as the franchise would be looking to re-enter the league with a solid campaign and his leadership could decide the same.

Ajinkya Rahane has played 111 IPL matches so far and has scored 3057 runs in the league at a strike rate of 120.59 and an average of 33.59. He has scored 25 half centuries and one century in the league.