"Sanju should be at No. 3 if he has to score more runs" - Aakash Chopra on Rajasthan Royals' batting heading into IPL 2023 clash vs LSG

Aakash Chopra feels Sanju Samson will be at his run-scoring best for the Rajasthan Royals (RR) if he bats at No. 3.

The Royals will lock horns with the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in an IPL 2023 clash in Jaipur on Wednesday, April 19. Samson heads into the game on the back of a 32-ball 60 while batting at No. 4 in RR's last match against the Gujarat Titans.

While previewing the RR-LSG clash in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra opined that the Rajasthan Royals might be in a dilemma regarding Devdutt Padikkal and Sanju Samson's ideal batting positions, explaining:

"Devdutt Padikkal is batting at No. 3, which is a good thing for Devdutt because he has more chances of scoring runs there, but Sanju should be at No. 3 if he has to score more runs. So they are searching for the fine balance slightly, about what is right for Sanju, Devdutt and the team."

While expecting Jos Buttler to be back to his run-scoring ways, the former Indian opener added that Yashasvi Jaiswal needs to deliver the goods with the bat, stating:

"Buttler will not get out for zero daily. He got out once and will be ready to hit again. Yashasvi will have to score runs because Yashasvi's graph has gone down slightly in the last two matches."

Chopra questioned the Rajasthan Royals for consistently batting Riyan Parag up the order. He opined that Dhruv Jurel should ideally bat ahead of the Assam all-rounder.

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"You might see Holder bowling in place of Zampa" - Aakash Chopra on Rajasthan Royals' likely changes

Adam Zampa bowled a decent spell against the Gujarat Titans. [P/C: iplt20.com]

Reflecting on the Rajasthan Royals' bowling, Aakash Chopra sees Jason Holder replacing Adam Zampa in their starting XI, subject to the West Indian all-rounder being fit and available, saying:

"There is help for the spinners on this pitch. Rajasthan have Ashwin and Chahal and the option of Zampa. Holder was probably unavailable for the last match but if he is fit and available, you might see Holder bowling in place of Zampa."

The reputed commentator reckons the Royals might field Murugan Ashwin as an additional spinner in Wednesday's game, reasoning:

"You might see Murugan Ashwin playing as an Impact Player because you might want to play an extra spinner here because the ground's dimensions are huge. They (RR) will be good once again in bowling. I personally don't have any doubts about that."

Murugan Ashwin bowled a solitary over in the only match he has played for the Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2023 thus far. Sandeep Sharma might have to make way if Samson and Co. want to play an additional spinner unless they go into the game a batter short.