Former India cricketer Wasim Jaffer believes that inaugural Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Rajasthan Royals (RR) are in a major spot of bother after their second consecutive loss of the ongoing edition of the tournament. RR had a forgetful outing in their first two matches of the IPL 2025 as they lost their opener clash against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) defeated them in their recent outing.
Jaffer, who featured for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) believes that the Rajasthan-based franchise is struggling in IPL 2025 because they released their core players like Jos Buttler, Yuzvendra Chahal, Trent Boult and Ravichandran Ashwin.
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"RR look a shadow of last season. Letting go of Buttler, Boult, Yuzi, and Ash—core gun players—left big boots to fill. Also failed to bring in stronger replacements. This season is shaping to be an uphill battle for RR," Jaffer posted on X after RR's loss to KKR.
RR faced a huge blow before the IPL 2025 as their captain, Sanju Samson, failed to recover on time, and the franchise appointed Riyan Parag as their new skipper for the first three matches of the tournament. IPL 2008 winners RR have already lost their two matches of the tournament. RR will now face Chennai Super Kings for their third match of the IPL 2025, which is scheduled to take place at ACA Stadium in Guwahati on March 30.