Rajasthan Royals (RR) strongest playing 11 for IPL 2026 after mini auction

Rajasthan Royals (RR) didn’t enjoy their last season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) as they finished at the penultimate position of the points table with four wins in 10 clashes at a net run rate of -0.549. From the beginning of the campaign, they didn’t get their wicket-keeper opening batter and captain, Sanju Samson, and had to make changes in the eleven.

However, the Royals made a massive move before the auction, which saw them trade in their former spin all-rounder, Ravindra Jadeja, from the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), along with Sam Curran. Both of them are quite guaranteed to be in their starting XI.

See Also: Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) strongest playing 11 for IPL 2026 after mini auction

Riyan Parag can now be the full-time leader of the franchise in the absence of Samson. But it can also come down to Yashasvi Jaiswal, who will be up for the leadership role, having a long future across formats for the Indian side. This added responsibility will also help him grow his caliber for the national side.

Rajasthan Royals’ strongest playing 11 for IPL 2026 after mini auction

Rajasthan made the massive buy of the Indian spinner, Ravi Bishnoi, for a price of INR 7.20 crore, as they anyway needed replacements for both Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana. They can now remain assured of the eight overs from Ravindra Jadeja and Bishnoi in the middle overs.

Rajasthan Royals (RR) full squad for IPL 2026

Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Shimron Hetmyer, Shubham Dubey, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Aman Rao, Dhruv Jurel, Ravi Singh, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Sam Curran, Riyan Parag, Yudhvir Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Yash Raj Punja, Vignesh Puthur, Jofra Archer, Kwena Maphaka, Nandre Burger, Sandeep Sharma, Tushar Deshpande, Sushant Mishra, Adam Milne, Kuldeep Sen, Brijesh Sharma.

There is no doubt for the franchise opening with their two southpaws – Yashasvi Jaiswal and Vaibhav Suryavanshi. The latter drilled 252 runs in seven innings of the IPL 2025 at an average of 36 and a strike rate of 206.55 with the help of one fifty and one century to his name. He has also now become more mature with time.

Jaiswal will hope to continue the same success of the last season when he smashed 559 runs in 14 innings at an average of 43 and a strike rate of 160 with the help of six half-centuries at the best score of 75. At number three, they can keep Lhuan-dre-Pretorious and follow it with Riyan Parag.

The minor issue could be having three left-handed batters in the top order. However, that doesn’t make a massive difference in the shortest format of the game. Another southpaw, Shimron Hetmyer, walks at number six for the franchise, just after the wicket-keeper batter, Dhruv Jurel.

Jadeja and Curran mean the Royals have got special players at number seven and eight. The latter can be a fine option in the middle overs and death, using his slower deliveries to fox the bowlers. Meanwhile, they hope for a far better performance from the Indian pacers- including Sandeep Sharma, who continues to impress in the IPL even with the growing age.

They will also have Tushar Deshpande in the eleven, along with Jofra Archer and Ravi Bishnoi. They don’t have the backup of Jurel, which will be tricky at times. In place of Archer, who would need to be rested in the middle of the event, the franchise can use Adam Milne with the new ball or bring Nandre Burger’s left-arm pace.

RR’s strongest playing 11 for IPL 2026 after mini auction

Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Lhuan-dre-Pretorious, Riyan Parag (c), Dhruv Jurel (wk.), Shimron Hetmyer, Ravindra Jadeja, Sam Curran, Jofra Archer, Ravi Bishnoi, Tushar Deshpande.

Impact player: Sandeep Sharma.