Just 81 runs from seven innings in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 but Rajasthan Royals (RR) head coach Kumar Sangakkara does not seem concerned about captain Riyan Parag's form. Sangakkara said that Parag is hitting the ball well and he needs to be involved in a partnership before going berserk in the slog overs.
“I think he’s batting really well,” Sangakkkara said in the pre-game press conference. “When you’re batting well, sometimes you don’t always score. I would have been concerned if he wasn’t hitting the ball well. I think he’s hitting it really well. He just needs to stitch together a few more runs so that he sets himself a good platform to attack in the end.”
Sangakkara has been impressed with Parag’s captaincy. Under his leadership in IPL 2026, Royals have won five out of seven games. The former Sri Lankan captains expects Parag to learn and get better under pressure.
“As a player, as a batter, the franchise backs him 100 per cent. And what’s really exciting for me is to see how he has just embraced the captaincy and the leadership. And you can see even in the last game how good a captain he was. So, I think he will learn more and more about pressure and he will get better,” the 48-year-old said.
Why Sangakkara chose Parag as Rajasthan Royals captain
Sangakkara also talked about why he chose Parag to lead RR. He feels that it is unfair to put so much pressure on a youngster.
“More than anyone else’s influence, why we chose Riyan as captain is that his learning curve has been steep. He has learned a lot from others, but more importantly, from himself.
“I’ve never seen a young player under so much pressure from the start of his career in RR. Riyan was, a lot of the time, front and centre in a lot of our social media. He was always put out there.
“Because he was an exciting young cricketer and had this aura about him. A pretty good-looking guy as well. But that also brings with it a lot of pressure. And sometimes it’s unfair to have such a young guy be under that pressure. I think he has learned a lot from those experiences,” added Sangakkara.
Parag will have a point to prove against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). Last time RR faced SRH, they lost five wickets for just nine runs and Parag was part of the collapse. This time they face SRH at home.