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Among the oldest IPL franchises, the Rajasthan Royals (RR) have been at the forefront of multiple IPL editions. Beating odd expectations, Shane Warne’s team won the inaugural edition of the IPL in 2008. Early on, other franchises with big names were given the major highlight, but the Rajasthan Royals are known for featuring a couple of raw talents besides players with proven performances. Time and again, history was about to repeat itself, but consistency was the key for the Royals to become runners-up in IPL 2022. Entry to the playoffs resulted on 6 occasions, signifying that RR play as a core unit.
Rajasthan Royals have had a mix of overseas and Indian captains since the first edition. Australian player Shane Warne’s role was instrumental in acquiring the maiden IPL title. All captains have guided Royals to playoffs except for Steve Smith when the team was dragged to the bottom in the points table for the first time. After his withdrawal as a captain, Sanju Samson, who has had a long connection with the Rajasthan Royals since 2013 and record-breaking scores in consecutive seasons (IPL 2019 and IPL 2020), has been retained to superhead the team as captain in 2025. He served Delhi Daredevils consistently in IPL 2016 and IPL 2017. Sanju rejoined the Rajasthan Royals campaign in 2018, and now he is a captain of the team since 2021.
The Rajasthan Royals had a better season last year compared to IPL 2023. RR finished at third spot in the points table with 14 league stage matches resulting in 8 wins and 5 defeats. Sanju Samson’s team won the Eliminator against Royal Challengers Bangalore but lost the Qualifier 2 to Sunrisers Hyderabad, ruining the hope to win a second IPL title. As the right-hand wicketkeeper batter, Sanju Samson steered the team again to one more playoff, and his batting performance was 531 runs with an average of 48.27 in IPL 2024 was up to the mark, he is the go-to person for captaining the Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2025.
RR Captains in IPL From 2008 to 2025
Rajasthan Royals have had faith in illustrious players from Shane Warne and Shane Watson to Rahul Dravid and Ajinkya Rahane from 2008 to 2019. Former Indian captain Rahul Dravid took a leadership position after the retirement of Warne in 2012. RR played the playoffs in 2013 before Watson took over the captainship. A former mentor of RR and the previous head coach of India, Rahul Dravid is now the head coach of RR. As RR were banned for two years, making a comeback in IPL was heartwarming for the team as RR entered playoffs again under the captaincy of Ajinkya Rahane in IPL 2018. In 2019, his poor performance raised concerns among management, making a bold decision to change the captain halfway through the season. One more Aussie, Steve Smith, stepped in as a skipper of the Rajasthan Royals, who continued full-time captaincy in 2020, but it was the first time when the team tested the bottom. He was also a stand-in captain during the tenure of Shane Watson. As Sanju Samson impressed everyone with 342 runs (IPL 2019) and stayed consistent with 375 runs (IPL 2020), he was upgraded to the senior role with sheer confidence in his calmness, aggressive batting, and leadership traits.
| Player | Span | Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | Draw | NR | W/L | %W | %L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SK Warne | 2008-2011 | 56 | 31 | 24 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.29 | 55.35 | 42.85 |
| SR Watson | 2014-2015 | 21 | 7 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0.63 | 33.33 | 52.38 |
| R Dravid | 2012-2013 | 40 | 23 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.35 | 57.50 | 42.50 |
| SPD Smith | 2014-2020 | 27 | 15 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1.36 | 55.55 | 40.74 |
| AM Rahane | 2018-2019 | 24 | 9 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.60 | 37.50 | 62.50 |
| SV Samson | 2021-2025 | 65 | 32 | 32 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1.06 | 49.23% | 49.23% |
Sanju Samson Captaincy Records in IPL
Sanju Samson has been the backbone of the RR campaign with considerable experience. His tenure as a captain for the Rajasthan Royals started after the era of Steve Smith. As hoped for, the RR campaign bounced back, making it to the final of IPL 2022, but it finished that season as runner-up after losing to the Gujarat Titans. As a captain, he led the team in 63 matches, concluding in 63 wins and 32 defeats, while there was no result for one match. His appearance in IPL 2024 gave a clear vision to the management of the Rajasthan Royals to continue with him as a captain, as his winning percentage saw a notable spike from the previous 48.89% after IPL 2023 to 50.81 before IPL 2025. His leadership against the rival team Chennai Super Kings has been mostly effective, but he faced hurdles against the Gujarat Titans, Mumbai Indians, and Sunrisers Hyderabad.
| Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | Draw | NR | W/L | %W | %L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 65 | 32 | 32 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1.06 | 49.23 | 49.23 |
RR IPL 2025 Squad
| No. | Player | Type | Acquisition | Role | Auction Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sanju Samson | Indian | Retained | Batter/Wicketkeeper | INR 18 crore |
| 2 | Yashasvi Jaiswal | Indian | Retained | Batter | INR 18 crore |
| 3 | Riyan Parag | Indian | Retained | Batter | INR 14 crore |
| 4 | Dhruv Jurel | Indian | Retained | Batter/Wicketkeeper | INR 14 crore |
| 5 | Shimron Hetmyer (West Indies) | Overseas | Retained | Batter | INR 11 crore |
| 6 | Sandeep Sharma | Indian | Retained | Bowler | INR 4 crore |
| 7 | Jofra Archer (England) | Overseas | Auction | Bowler | INR 12.50 crore |
| 8 | Mahesh Theekshana (Sri Lanka) | Overseas | Auction | Bowler | INR 4.40 crore |
| 9 | Wanindu Hasaranga (Sri Lanka) | Overseas | Auction | Bowler | INR 5.25 crore |
| 10 | Akash Madhwal | Indian | Auction | Bowler | INR 1.20 crore |
| 11 | Kumar Kartikeya Singh | Indian | Auction | Bowler | INR 30 lakh |
| 12 | Nitish Rana | Indian | Auction | All-rounder | INR 4.20 crore |
| 13 | Tushar Deshpande | Indian | Auction | Bowler | INR 6.50 crore |
| 14 | Shubham Dubey | Indian | Auction | Batter | INR 80 lakh |
| 15 | Yudhvir Charak | Indian | Auction | All-rounder | INR 35 lakh |
| 16 | Fazalhaq Farooqi | Overseas | Auction | Bowler | INR 2 crore |
| 17 | Vaibhav Suryavanshi | Indian | Auction | Batter | INR 1.1 crore |
| 18 | Kwena Maphaka (South Africa) | Overseas | Auction | Bowler | INR 75 lakh |
| 19 | Ashok Sharma | Indian | Auction | Bowler | INR 30 lakh |
| 20 | Kunal Singh Rathore | Indian | Auction | Batter | INR 30 lakh |
As the Rajasthan Royals campaign has reshuffled the team with key retained players and overseas cricketers, the team will look forward to winning the second IPL title. Sanju Samson will be the pivotal figure leading RR for one more time.
