Rajasthan Royals (RR) kick off their second leg of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 against the Punjab Kings on Tuesday (September 21). Ahead of their resumption, RR all-rounder Chris Morris said that he will look to instill calmness amongst the players in the franchise being an experienced and senior player himself.
The Royals take on the Kings at the Dubai International Stadium. In a webinar organised by the franchise, Chris Morris stated that RR have many experienced players in their ranks. They suffered a heavy blow with the likes of Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes set to miss the remainder of the season in UAE.
Morris, however, said that he will be helping skipper Sanju Samson on the field. He also said that he will be in constant conversations with the bowlers, take on the responsibility as a senior member of the side to keep the group calm under pressure. The South African all-rounder acknowledged the fact that this role is a part of the gig and he has been doing the same in his entire career so far.
Speaking of match readiness being an issue after the break, Morris said, “I think match-readiness is probably going to be an issue. Same as IPL last year in Dubai, guys took a couple of matches to get rustiness out of their bones. I think the fortunate thing for us is that people have been playing a lot of cricket, especially overseas players. I have been pre-season at home, I think match-fitness is always the best type of fitness. ”
“I think a few guys will struggle to get that rustiness off. It is natural and it is going to happen. This is the nature of the beast with COVID-19. So, I think it will be the case initially, some guys have to shake off the rustiness but that is part and parcel of the game. You have to find a way and make it work.”
Later on in the webinar, captain Sanju Samson was asked about the X-factor in the RR camp, to which he said that it is a secret and is being kept as a surprise for the fans. He added that the surprise will be revealed when they take the field on Tuesday and asked the fans to wait and watch.
Addressing the challenges of playing the IPL this time, the wicket-keeper batsman said that teams and players face a different challenge this time around.
“Earlier, the challenge was to come out of the COVID-19 times and play the IPL. This time we are keeping under a separate challenge, we played seven matches in India and now we have come here to play the rest of the tournament. We know how to tackle challenges as a team,” he added.
Lastly, Samson was questioned as to whether Liam Livingstone would be used as a bowling option as the tournament progresses. The Kerala-born cricketer answered saying it is good for the team to have people who can chip in with a few overs. He said that both Livingstone and Riyan Parag could fill those roles. However, he did not confirm if Liam will be seen taking the ball or not.
