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Inaugural champions Rajasthan Royals (RR) purchased nine players at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 auction that was held in Kochi on Friday, December 23. The franchise went into the mini-auction with a purse of ₹13.2 crore. Out of the nine slots available, a maximum of four were for overseas players.
Rajasthan managed to fill up all their slots at the auction and returned with a purse of ₹3.35 crore. Experienced West Indies all-rounder Jason Holder was RR’s most expensive purchase at the IPL 2023 auction at ₹5.75 crore.
The Royals also went for Australian leg-spinner Adam Zampa and bought him for ₹1.5 crore and former England Test skipper Joe Root for ₹1 crore.
RR’s other purchases at the IPL 2023 auction on Friday were Donovan Ferreira (₹50 lakh), Kunal Rathore (₹20 lakh), KM Asif (₹30 lakh), Murugan Ashwin (₹20 lakh), Akash Vashisht (₹20 lakh) and Abdul P A (₹20 lakh).
Following the conclusion of the IPL 2023 auction, which saw some hectic activity, we rank all of RR’s buys.
Jason Holder 8/10
West Indies all-rounder Jason Holder is one of the most versatile T20 cricketers on the circuit. A death-overs specialist with the ball, he is also a handy big-hitting batter.
The 31-year-old represented debutant franchise Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in IPL 2022 and did reasonably well, claiming 14 wickets in 12 matches. His services with the bat were hardly needed.
Holder was with Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) for the 2020 and 2021 seasons and made an impact there as well, claiming 14 and 16 wickets, respectively. The versatile cricketer is someone who is expected to contribute more often than not. At ₹5.75 crore, he is a worthy purchase, given what he brings to the table.
Adam Zampa (8/10)
Australian leg-spinner Adam Zampa has been an underrated bowler right throughout his international career. But he has often delivered goods and that too on the big stage. He was one of the key performers in Australia’s T20 World Cup win in 2021.
The 30-year-old has an excellent T20I record, having claimed 82 wickets in 72 matches at an average of 21.71 and an excellent economy of 6.93. His numbers speak for themselves
For some reason, Zampa has not quite made a big impact in the IPL yet. He did claim 6/19 for Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS) against SRH back in 2016. But that performance has pretty much been forgotten. The leggie has only played 14 IPL matches.
Zampa is at the peak of his powers and at ₹1.5 crore is pretty much a steal for RR.
Joe Root (6.5/10)
There have been mixed reviews of RR’s decision to purchase Joe Root for ₹1 crore. The former England Test captain hasn’t played T20I cricket since May 2019. He continues to play The Hundred.
In his T20 career, 31-year-old Root has featured in 88 matches and has scored 2083 runs, but at a middling strike rate of 126.70.
There is no doubt about his Test and one-day credentials, but question marks over his effectiveness as a T20 batter exist.
Donovan Ferreira (6.5/10)
Young South African talent Donovan Ferreira is a hard-hitter batter. He grabbed headlines when he was purchased by Johannesburg Super Kings for Rand 5.5 million (USD 310,000 approx.) at the SA20 auction. The right-handed batter has a strike rate of 153.56 after 26 T20 games.
He recently registered his highest List A score of 96 for the Titans against North West. He has a first-class hundred to his name and is highly rated among Proteas’ upcoming cricketers. Could be value for money at ₹50 lakh.
Kunal Rathore (6/10)
A 20-year-old left-handed batter from Rajasthan, Kunal Rathore has featured in two first-class matches, seven List-A games, and seven T20 matches. He has registered a half-century each in first-class and List-A cricket and has a strike rate of close to 130 in T20s.
Rathore recently scored 75 against Kerala in the Ranji Trophy 2022-23 match in Jaipur. He was purchased for ₹20 lakh by RR at the IPL 2023 auction.
KM Asif (6/10)
Kerala right-arm pacer KM Asif was part of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for a few seasons. He made his IPL debut in 2018 but has only played three matches so far, claiming four wickets in the process.
The 29-year-old has the experience of 27 T20 games in which he has picked up 33 wickets at an impressive average of 20.39 and an economy rate of 7.81. He had a good Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy campaign, claiming 12 wickets in seven games. At ₹30 lakh, seems a good budget buy for RR.
Murugan Ashwin (6/10)
Tamil Nadu leg-spinner Murugan Ashwin is an experienced T20 cricketer at the domestic level. In 96 matches, he has picked up 94 wickets at an average of 25.45. He has shown glimpses of talent in the IPL over the years but has not been consistent enough. In 42 IPL games, he has only managed 35 wickets.
Ashwin represented Mumbai Indians (MI) in the 2022 season, claiming nine wickets in eight games. He was picked for ₹20 lakh by RR. If he manages to come up with some decent performances, he will be worth the money.
Akash Vasisht (6/10)
A handy all-rounder from Himachal Pradesh, Akash Vasisht has scored 1151 runs in 24 first-class games with two hundreds. He has also picked up 50 wickets with his left-arm spin.
Vasisht has played 17 T20 games and has scored 322 runs at a strike rate of 146.36. He has also picked up seven scalps in the format. An acceptable purchase at ₹20 lakh.
Abdul Basith (5.5/10)
Abdul Basith, the son of a bus driver from Kerala, was also picked up by RR at ₹20 lakh. He has impressed in the Kerala Cricket Association’s (KCA) T20 tournaments.
Basith has featured in eight T20s so far, scoring 129 runs at an impressive strike rate of 149.31. It remains to be seen whether he can make an impact if given an opportunity.
Also Read: SWOT analysis of Rajasthan Royals (RR) squad after IPL 2023 auction
