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The newly appointed captain of Rajasthan Royals, Riyan Parag, expressed pride and gratitude at the franchise's pre-season press conference on Thursday.
Reflecting on his journey with the franchise, Parag said, "I was here when I was 17. It means a lot that I'm here in this position right now. The journey had a lot of ups and downs, maybe more downs than ups, but I'm proud I came through it. I'm really thankful to Rajasthan for backing me, understanding the cricketer I was, and giving me opportunities. To now be in a position to lead the side feels surreal. From 2018 to now, it's been a journey I'm extremely proud of." The 24-year-old all-rounder, who has spent most of his cricketing career with the Royals, emphasised his team-first approach. "For me, leading this franchise with so many years, connections, and emotions. It is very special. My sole focus right now is to try and win the IPL. I'm not thinking about individual milestones. It's about what's best for the team and achieving success together." Parag also spoke about handling criticism and staying focused. "I've gone through everything: criticism, trolling, and it helped me understand that only a few opinions matter: mine, and those close to me. To be at my best, I need to be at peace, and that comes from not getting distracted by outside noise." Head Coach Kumar Sangakkara outlined the team's strategy and preparations for the season. "We wanted to upskill our side, adding more batting depth, strengthening local spin options, and bringing in all-rounders to give more flexibility, especially in the bowling department. With the trades and auction buys, we've addressed key areas, which now allow us to explore different combinations, including our overseas options. Now the focus is on bringing everything together: building belief, preparing well, and executing on the field. At the end of the day, results will define us." Sangakkara added that player well-being and enjoyment of the game remain central to the Royals' approach. "But equally important is that the players enjoy the journey. You can't just focus on results: players will have ups and downs, and that doesn't define them. We want the group to enjoy playing together, take it one game at a time, and trust that results will follow." With the leadership now given to young Riyan Parag, the winners of the inaugural IPL season are aiming for their second title this season. Rajasthan Royals squad for IPL 2026: Ravindra Jadeja, Sam Curran, Donovan Ferreira, Sandeep Sharma, Shubham Dubey, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Lhuan-Dre Pretorius, Shimron Hetmyer, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Jofra Archer, Tushar Deshpande, Kwena Maphaka, Nandre Burger, Ravi Bishnoi, Sushant Mishra, Yash Raj Punja, Vignesh Puthur, Ravi Singh, Aman Rao, Brijesh Sharma, Adam Milne and Kuldeep Sen. (ANI)
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