'No slipping up anymore' - Rahul Dravid urges consistency for RR ahead of RCB clash

Rajasthan Royals (RR) are set to face Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on April 24 in Match 42 of IPL 2025. Ahead of the clash, RR head coach Rahul Dravid acknowledged the team's recent performances and admitted that they have played some good cricket but have also lost a couple of close games.

The legendary cricketer also laid emphasis on the importance of stepping up during crucial moments and the need to get back into the contest.

"Do we have an RCB player from last time? Play him in the XI straightaway. No, not at all, man. I don't think about it like that, to be very honest. Just trying to play a good game of cricket, We know we have to play well to be still alive in this tournament. I know we've lost a couple of close games coming into this, but we've played some good cricket as well. It's one of those tournaments where a few balls go here or there and we might have been in a slightly different position, but you need to play well in those critical moments," Dravid was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

Expect a high-scoring contest: Dravid

The former Indian cricketer noted that while teams must go for it regardless of conditions, each surface plays differently. The right-handed batter admitted that it was not ideal for judgment and believes the current wicket appears promising for a high-scoring game. The former RCB player emphasised the importance of winning consistently, given RR’s current position.

"I mean, you just have to go for it irrespective and that's a given, But I think every surface will be different. I think the last one, just having a chat with the groundsman, was under covers for a really long period of time, so it was probably not a good one to judge it on. The wicket I'm seeing here, from at least what I can make of it, looks like a really good wicket, so I can't really say how those wickets looked in earlier games,” the Indore-born said.

“But the track that's been produced for this one looks actually to be a very good cricket wicket and I think it should be a pretty high-scoring game. Like I said earlier, it's a very important game for us. Every game from here on, the position we find ourselves in, we can't afford to make many mistakes. We've got to start climbing that table quickly and we've got to start winning games quickly, there are no options, no chances of slipping up anymore,” he added.

Limited home advantage due to mega auction: Dravid

The RR coach further went on to mention uncertainty about what franchises specifically expected from curators or pitch conditions. The Bengaluru-born cricketer noted that home advantage might not be as significant this season, as it is the first year after a major auction and emphasised that many players, despite being part of home teams, are new to their current grounds and setups.

"I'm not really sure what specific franchises might have wanted from their curators or from their pitches, But yeah, I think home advantage, generally, the teams are new as well, right? It's the first year of a big auction cycle, so for a lot of the players, even though they may be your home players, they are playing for those teams or those grounds for the first time,” Dravid said on the pitch conditions at Chinnaswamy.

“For example, at RCB, someone like Phil Salt was at KKR and he's coming here for the first time. Someone like Nitish Rana who was not with us and he's playing for us this year, so for him, Jaipur is actually kind of a new ground in some ways. So maybe sometimes, I think that when you just have a big auction and there's a change of squad and a change of team, the home advantage may not be that significant. But maybe as you go later on into the cycle, maybe you might start seeing their significance a little bit more because then your players get to practice and play a little bit more on that compared to the opposition team," he added.