We look at some of the numbers which have defined the Rajasthan Royals’ performance in IPL 2024.
Rajasthan Royals have had a brilliant start to the season having won four matches on the trot. They are the only team which remains undefeated thus far in the tournament. From Trent Boult’s wicket-taking prowess in the powerplay to Yuzvendra Chahal’s control in the middle overs to Riyan Parag’s breakthrough season, we look at some of the numbers which have defined the Royals’ performance in IPL 2024.
Can Royals equal their 2015 record?
4-0: The Royals have won all their four matches thus far and all by convincing margins. They have been as good in gunning down targets as they have been in defending them. They are the only team which is undefeated so far in the tournament. RR have won their first five matches in a season only once before in the IPL – back in 2015! Will they repeat their feat the second time around?
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Trent Boult – lethal in the powerplay
5: Trent Boult has bagged five wickets in four innings in the powerplay which is the most for any bowler this season. The left-arm seamer has delivered 66 deliveries and conceded 73 runs at an economy rate of just 6.63. While Boult has the best bowling strike rate in this phase of play (min. 8 overs & 3 innings), his economy rate places him at number three behind Pat Cummins (5.2) and Jasprit Bumrah (5.3). Boult has the ability to swing the new ball which makes him one of the most dangerous bowlers upfront. He is the joint-highest wicket-taker in the powerplay in the IPL (along with Deepak Chahar) since 2019.
RR vs GT Live Score IPL 2024
Royal performance by Rajasthan’s bowlers in the powerplay
22.8 & 16: With Boult leading from the front with the new ball, the Royals have the best bowling average (22.8) and bowling strike rate (16) in the powerplay this season. They have also conceded a boundary every 4.7 deliveries which places them only at number 2 behind Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Chahal – game-changer in middle overs
5: Yuzvendra Chahal is the leading wicket-taker in IPL history and just five wickets short of becoming the first bowler to Club-200 in the tournament. Chahal’s forte is to control the flow of runs in the middle overs also picking crucial wickets thereby dictating the course of play – a role he excelled in for the Challengers over the years. Not surprisingly, Chahal is the joint-highest wicket-taker of the season in the middle overs (7-15) with five wickets at an average of 12 and an economy of just 6! He has just conceded five boundaries in 60 deliveries in this phase of play.
Royals – choking the batters at the death
8.4: While the Royals have not bagged a heap of wickets in the death overs, they have kept the run-scoring in check and have the lowest combined economy rate of 8.4 amongst all franchises in this phase of play this season. Just for perspective, the Royals are followed by the Titans who have given away runs at a rate of 9.6 per over – the wide gulf is an indicator of how good the Royals have been in restricting the opposition batters in the last five overs.
Nandre Burger has been outstanding in the death overs for the Royals and has conceded just five runs in his two overs. Boult has bowled a solitary over in this phase of play giving away just 8 runs while Avesh Khan has also been restrictive with an economy of 8.4 in the final 5 overs. However, the most interesting name on this list for the Royals is Chahal who despite being a leg spinner has operated at the death and has only gone for 29 runs off his four overs while also picking three wickets!
Riyan Parag – finally showcasing his talent
185: With Yashasvi Jaiswal looking a touch out of sorts in the early stages this season and Jos Buttler also failing with the bat in the first three matches for the Royals, it was Riyan Parag who stood up for the franchise with three stellar performances with the bat. Parag is the leading run-scorer for the Royals in the tournament with an aggregate of 185 runs in four innings at a high strike rate of 158.1. A 29-ball 43 against Lucknow Super Giants was followed by a brilliant counter-attacking unbeaten 84 off just 45 deliveries (from 30/2) against the Capitals. Parag then stabilized the RR innings after they had lost early wickets in the 126-run chase against the Mumbai Indians remaining undefeated on 54 off 39 deliveries.
Parag has already eclipsed his previous best aggregate in an IPL season and seems to have finally come of age. He had scored a total of 600 runs in 44 innings in five seasons between 2019 and 2023 at an abysmal average of 16.22 and strike rate of 124 with just two fifties in this time frame.
The best middle-order in the tournament
48.8: The RR middle-order (3-7) has been the most prolific amongst all teams thus far and has an aggregate of 488 runs between them at the best-combined batting average of 48.8. Sunrisers, who are at number two on this parameter, have a corresponding average of 35.5. Apart from Parag, skipper Sanju Samson has been in fine form, and has scored 178 runs at a strike rate of 150.8 with two match-winning performances.
