IPL 2022: 3 Players Rajasthan Royals (RR) should've retained instead of the current retentions

Rajasthan Royals won the first edition of the Indian Premier League under the captaincy of Shane Warne. The team had players who fought like champions and defeated Chennai Super Kings in the final by three wickets. The Royals won the tournament with a squad that no one would have thought of, and it is the reason that when a team like RR picks a player, everyone seems to notice.

For the upcoming edition of the league, RR has retained Sanju Samson, Jos Buttler, and Yashasvi Jaiswal. The team management had the option to retain one more player, but they didn’t go for that. Rajasthan is a team that has been really aggressive in the auction ever since it made a comeback in the IPL. However, the players on whom the team had spent a massive amount of money were not retained.

In the list, let’s take a look at three players whom Rajasthan Royals should have retained instead of the current retentions

1. Ben Stokes

Rajasthan Royals bought Ben Stokes for INR 12.5 crores in 2018 and decided to retain him for the next four years. But, the team decided to not retain him for the upcoming season. Stokes sustained an injury during the first match of the India leg of the 2021 season which ruled him out of the UAE leg as well.

He played a total of 31 matches for RR in the IPL and made 604 runs at an average of 23.23 and a strike rate of 130.45. He took 16 wickets at an average of 41.12, an economy of 9.42, and a strike rate of 26.1.

Stokes is rated as one of the best all-rounders of the current generation. He helped England win the ODI World Cup in 2019 and also played one of the best innings during the third Ashes Test in 2019. But, injuries ruled him out of the cricketing action for a long time. Also, he took an indefinite break from cricket last year. These might have been the reason that Rajasthan didn’t pick him for the upcoming edition of the league.

2. Liam Livingstone

Rajasthan Royals picked Liam Livingstone for INR 75 lakh during the 2021 player auction which was his base price. Livingstone made 42 runs in five matches during the India leg and didn’t return for the UAE leg. He was a part of the franchise in 2019 as well when he was picked for INR 50 lakh and played only four matches.

In the past couple of months, Livingstone has played a series of games for different franchises. He has become a regular in England’s limited-overs setup and has earned the title of a batter who can score runs aggressively.

During the T20 World Cup 2021, he also showed his bowling skills as he managed to pick six wickets at an economy of 5.73 in six matches. He is placed in the third position in ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings and he has jumped to this position within a year.

3. Chetan Sakariya

Chetan Sakariya is a left-arm medium-fast bowler from Bhavnagar who plays for Saurashtra in domestic cricket – this was the only information people had regarding this 23-years-old bowler when he came into the 2021 auction pool with a base price of INR 20 lakh. But within a few minutes, the internet started talking about him, and at the end of the auction, Sakariya was sold to RR for a price of INR 1.2 crores.

Sakariya justified the price that he received in the auction by picking 14 wickets in 12 matches for Rajasthan at an average of 30.42 and an economy of 8.19. His performance helped him make his limited-overs debut for India against Sri Lanka in July last year.

Sakariya picked 13 wickets in seven matches in the Vijay Hazare Trophy at an average of 19.61, an economy of 4.10, and a strike rate of 28.6. His performance helped Saurashtra qualify for the semi-final of the tournament against Tamil Nadu. He picked up a fifer in that game, but Tamil Nadu won the match by two wickets off the last ball.