Rahul Dravid, head coach of the Rajasthan Royals (RR), talked about making Riyan Parag captain of the franchise and promoting him to the no. 3 spot in the batting order for IPL 2025. This has presented Parag with more responsibilities and maximized his potential.
Head coach Rahul Dravid has praised him as one of the team's greatest batsmen. However, his start in the IPL 2025 has been modest, with scores of 4 and 25 in RR's first two games. Sunday's encounter against the Chennai Super Kings is his last chance to hit a major run on his home ground, as Guwahati will host RR's final match of the season.
"That's the right word to use, that he's promoted. Look, Riyan is one of our best batters; let's be honest. And we want to give him as many balls as we possibly can. Twenty overs is a very short time, and the more balls Riyan Parag bats for us, the better it is for us as a team,” Dravid said in the pre-match press conference, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo.
"But of course, we'll keep looking a these thingst, we'll keep assessing, we'll keep seeing how it goes. And yeah, we know that Riyan has done really well at No. 4, so it gives us an option. But honestly, the move to No. 3 was a positive move to try and give him more time to bat.
And we know how destructive a player he is, and if he gets more time, then he can score more runs, and that can benefit the team. So that was the thinking, but we can always assess that, and we can always see how it's going. And I think he's quite comfortable; he's more than capable of batting at any position," he added.
Riyan Parag is also captaining RR in the first three matches of IPL 2025, as Sanju Samson’s injury has kept him from keeping wickets, and he is playing as an impact player only.
RR has lost their first two matches, but Dravid remains supportive of the 23-year-old. Dravid, who initially coached Parag as a 16-year-old in 2017 for India's Under-19 squad, continues to believe in his talent and leadership potential.
"I think he's adapted really well. It's not easy to captain when the team is scoring 280 runs [Sunrisers Hyderabad] on a flat wicket. The first game is probably a tough game to be a captain. But I think the calmness that he showed and the fact that it didn't seem like our team was panicking was really good," he said.
"Even in the game against KKR [Kolkata Knight Riders], his brave decision to bring himself on [with the ball], realizing that the wicket was turning, with two left-handers batting, to bowl the fifth over in the powerplay was a brave decision and a correct decision. So I think he's been very impressive. As a captain, it's nice for him to get this opportunity till Sanju can field again. And he's sharing his thoughts and his ideas. Very clear. He's very solid in that sense.
So, yeah, those were very impressive early days. And it's very nice for us as, again, a team looking to develop people and players. Of course, it's unfortunate that Sanju was not able to captain and play for us. But I think in a way it's nice that we were able to give Riyan, our vice-captain, a chance to captain in a few games and give him that exposure and experience as well," Dravid added.
The Rajasthan Royals' head coach, Rahul Dravid, has revealed that the squad is not afraid to field their 14-year-old phenom, Vaibhav Suryavanshi. Dravid stated that they are willing to allow the new players some time to adjust to the high-pressure environment of the tournament.
"He is training really well, and he looks like a really good and exciting talent, but there are other equally good players as well, and part of our responsibility is to groom him well, give him a little bit of time in the environment, let him get used to it and practice with the players, and let him get a feel of the environment. All these are great experiences for him, rather than putting him straight in front of the crowd, so it's a part of the process we follow in grooming a player, and if an opportunity arises, we won't be scared to play him if it is required," Dravid said.
RR will face CSK in Guwahati on March 30.
