The Rajasthan Royals have released Australian batsman Steve Smith ahead of IPL 2021 and named India’s Sanju Samson as the captain for the upcoming season.
He finished with 311 runs from 14 games and could not inspire the Royals as captain either. Smith had come back to Rajasthan Royals after spending two seasons with Risining Pune Supergiants. Rajasthan Royals finished 8th in the IPL 2020.
"Rajasthan Royals today announced that they would retain 17 players for the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The Royals would be releasing the remaining 8 players. Sanju Samson will lead the Royals as the captain for the very first time in 2021. The Royals believe that the retained players present a strong core with a good mix of Indian and international players, who would form a solid base around which the rest of the squad can be built.
"The retained contingent have all been active in domestic and international cricket, with the majority of the players doing well in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy, while Kartik Tyagi has been part of the victorious Indian team in Australia. Steve Smith, the Royals’ skipper in the last edition will not be retained for the upcoming season of the IPL in 2021. The foreign list of retained players includes Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, and Jofra Archer. All three English players performed well for the Royals in the last tournament and have been good contributors to the team in the past three years. MVP Jofra Archer, was the top wicket-taker for the Royals in 2020 with twenty wickets, while Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes have been vital contributors in the Rajasthan Royals’ important wins in the recent past. In addition to the English trio, David Miller and Andrew Tye have been retained too," Rajasthan said in their official release.
The Royals’ new captain, Sanju Samson spoke on his appointment and the new challenge that awaits him in the coming season.
“It’s an absolute honour to have been announced as the captain of Rajasthan Royals. It’s a team that is so close to my heart, which I’ve been lucky enough to play for over the years, and I’m excited about the challenge that lies ahead of me as the leader of the team. The Royals have had some wonderful captains over the years and I'm so grateful for all the time I've spent working with and learning from great leaders like Rahul Dravid, Shane Watson, Ajinkya Rahane and Steve Smith!! I now cannot wait to get started and look forward to the season ahead.”
Retained players:
Sanju Samson, Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Jos Buttler, Riyan Parag, Shreyas Gopal, Rahul Tewatia, Mahipal Lomror, Kartik Tyagi, Andrew Tye, Jaydev Unadkat, Mayank Markande, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Anuj Rawat, David Miller, Manan Vohra, Robin Uthappa.
Released Players:
Steve Smith, Ankit Rajpoot, Oshane Thomas, Akash Singh, Varun Aaron, Tom Curran, Anirudha Joshi, Shashank Singh.
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