Rajasthan Royals are all but out of IPL 2025. Rahul Dravid’s return to the side has been counterproductive, with the Jaipur outfit stumbling to 7 losses in 9 games. However, Dhruv Jurel, Shimron Hetmyer and Shubham Dubey will look back at the past fortnight thinking how RR could have easily had three more wins in their kitty.
For three straight games, Rajasthan Royals have ‘bottled’ what seemed like an easy win. A familiar pattern emerges, with the Royals failing to close out the chase. Their 25 crore duo of Hetmyer and Jurel have simply failed to cope with pressure, crumbling and leading their side to defeat from the jaws of victory.
Rajasthan Royals and the subtle art of not finishing games
Rajasthan Royals campaign was still in the balance when when they travelled to Delhi to face off against the Capitals. What should have been a routine win, turned into a nightmare with Mitchell Starc forcing a super over. The Royals harakiri in the Super Over handed Delhi the win, leaving the Royals in anguish.
While it was Starc in Delhi, it was former Rajasthan Royals pacer Avesh Khan in Jaipur. Again needing 9 off the final over, Jurel, Hetmyer and Dubey failed to finish the job as Lucknow Super Giants clinched a two-run win. The Royals need just 25 off their last three overs against Lucknow, but failed to get over the line.
In Bengaluru, the script was seemingly turning. While Jurel struggled for most of his stay at the creche, he turned a corner. Jurel and Dubey smashed Bhuvneshwar Kumar for 22 to bring the equation down to 18 off 12 balls. Enter Josh Hazlewood. While Starc went with the yorker, Hazlewood mixed his lengths, using the extra bounce to good effect. Jurel was caught behind and Archer was also caught at cover. The Australian ace conceded just 1 and picked up two wickets, for RR to now slip to needing 17 off the final over. In typical fashion, RR ended up losing the game by 11 runs, all but ending their IPL 2025 campaign.
Hmm so today Rajasthan Royals couldn't manage to chase the equivalent of 9 runs required of 6 balls. Vs DC – Lost the game when 9 was required of 6 ballsVs LSG – Lost the game when 9 were required of 6 ballsVs RCB-Lost the game when 18 were required of 12 balls.
— Spandan Roy (@talksports45) April 24, 2025A collective failure?
Rajasthan Royals were amongst the only two teams to retain six players ahead of the IPL 2025 Auction. They invested heavily in the duo of Shimron Hetmyer and Dhruv Jurel, retaining them at a combined cost of 25 crore. That decision has come back to haunt them, with Hetmyer-Jurel at the centre of their three straight losses. That they were retained over the likes of Jos Buttler and Yuzvendra Chahal, further compounds matters for a struggling side.
In an ideal world, Rajasthan should have picked up 3 easy wins. Instead, they have picked up three straight losses. Each loss, more difficult to explain than the other. Each loss where an opposition bowler bowled one of the greatest spells of their career. Each defeat where Royals simply shot themselves in the foot.
Mathematically, the Royals could still make the playoffs. They need to win their last five games and hope the other results go their way. But given they have ‘bottled’ their own games, it seems their chapter in IPL 2025 is all but done.
‘Bottlejobs’ Rajasthan Royals face IPL 2025 exit after hat-trick of choking Inside Sport India.
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