Riyan Parag has potential to be a good allrounder: Sairaj Bahutule

Our Sports Reporter

GUWAHATI: The spin bowling coach of Rajasthan Royals Sairaj Bahutule has expressed support for Riyan Parag, stating that he has the potential to become a good allrounder in all formats of the game in the coming days.

Speaking to the media last night during the post-match press conference, Bahutule, who previously represented Assam in the Ranji Trophy, said, “Riyan has improved with every opportunity he’s received. Over time, he’s brought a lot of consistency to his performances at the domestic level and IPL.”

It may be mentioned here that in the previous IPL season, Parag finished as the third-highest run-scorer for the competition.

Bahutule also lauded Parag’s bowling performance in yesterday’s match against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). “Although Riyan didn’t pick up a wicket, he didn’t allow the KKR batters to dominate him,” said the coach.

Parag, who is leading Rajasthan Royals for the first three-match of the season, finished with figures of 0/25 from his four-over spell against KKR.

Commenting on the team’s performance in the match against KKR, Bahutule admitted, “We were short by around 20-30 runs. If we could have managed a total of 170-180, we could have applied more pressure on KKR.”

The spinners from KKR, particularly Varun Chakravarthy and Moeen Ali, were instrumental in their victory, taking crucial wickets that led to a collapse in Rajasthan Royals’ middle order. However, Bahutule said that his spinners might not have been as effective as KKR’s, but he remains optimistic that they will bounce back in coming matches.

Meanwhile, Moeen Ali, who was brought in to replace Sunil Narine in the game, delivered a superb performance with the ball, claiming two wickets. Reflecting on his performance, Moeen said, “My job was to bowl in the right areas to build pressure on the opposing batters. Varun was bowling exceptionally well, and it was fantastic to bowl alongside him.”

 Moeen finished with figures of 2/23, while Varun ended his spell with 2/17.

Moeen also expressed his satisfaction with the pitch at the ACA Stadium in Barsapara, noting that it provided a better balance between bat and ball.

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