Little shocking to see where RR stand in IPL 2023 points table despite our quality: Sanju Samson

Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson came up with a no-holds-barred assessment of their campaign.

In the IPL 2023 season, saying that 14 points is not what they wanted to finish the group stages with. Rajasthan Royals defeated Punjab Kings in their last group stage match, chasing 188 in Dharamsala on Friday, May 19.

Rajasthan Royals are still in with a chance to reach the playoffs but it’s a slim one. Rajasthan should hope Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore, who are with 14 points each with a game left, lose their last league game and there’s a tie on 14 points to decide the final playoffs spot. Kolkata Knight Riders are also in the hunt.

Rajasthan, who have a positive Net Run Rate, also need RCB to lose their final match to Gujarat Titans on Sunday by a big margin so that they can leapfrog them on the IPL 2023 points table, in case of a 14-point logjam.

Rajasthan Royals had an opportunity to go past RCB’s Net Run Rate as they needed to chase down 188 in 18.3 overs or fewer on Friday. However, they were not able to get to the target in the said number of overs as the chase went down to the final over.

“The team which we have, the quality of players and characters which we have, its a bit shocking to see where we stand at the table at this point of time. If you honestly look at the season. There are a lot of things to look back and think about and discuss about and learn from it,” Samson said after RR’s win in Dharamsala.

Rajasthan Royals, who reached the final of IPL 2022, continued from where they left last season, winning 4 of their first 5 matches. However, they went off the boil, losing 5 of their next 6 matches. Rajasthan finished the group stages with 7 wins and as many losses, missing out on opportunities to find a spot in the top 4.

Lack of consistency in terms of team selection and the inability to find a settled batting order have cost Rajasthan Royals in the IPL 2023 season despite the individual brilliance in the team.

Yashsavi Jaiswal finished the group stages with 625 runs, the most by an uncapped player in the IPL history. The 21-year-old went past Shaun Marsh’s tally of 616 runs from 2008 while Yuzvendra Chahal, the Purple Cap winner from last season, continued his good run, picking 21 wickets in 14 matches. R Ashwin also had a better season, picking up 14 wickets in 13 matches.

Rajasthan will have to play the waiting game and see how Mumbai Indians fare against SunRisers Hyderabad and RCB fare against GT on Sunday.