Nitish Rana declared that he has no problem with the Rajasthan Royals (RR) using Riyan Parag as their stand-in captain for the first three Indian Premier League (IPL 2025) games.
Because primary captain Sanju Samson lacked the medical clearance to field or take wickets during the games, the Assam all-rounder was named the team’s stand-in captain. The first champions, led by Parag, lost the first two games before winning the third. To give Parag his maiden IPL victory as captain, Nitish had a brilliant innings against the Chennai Super Kings, hitting 81 off 36 balls.
An additional candidate for the position of stand-in captain was Nitish, who was signed by the team at the IPL 2025 mega-auction for INR 4.20 crore. He demonstrated promise as a captain while leading his old team, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), in the 2023 Indian Premier League without Shreyas Iyer. However, the RR management approved Parag.
Citing team familiarity, Rana supports Parag’s captaincy.
This was the right move, according to Nitish Rana. He clarified that before being named captain, he had played for the KKR squad for a number of seasons. The southpaw claimed to grasp the team environment better. Likewise, Parag had an edge because he has been with the Royals since the 2019 Indian Premier League.
“I had been a member of KKR for six or seven years when I was appointed captain. I knew the setting and culture of the team, so that was really helpful.
I believe Riyan is more familiar with the team’s structure than I am now that I have RR.
“And I believe the management made the right choice,” Nitish was cited by India Today as adding.
But the seasoned Uttar Pradesh batsman acknowledged that if the position had been offered to him, he would have accepted it.
The captaincy would have been something I would have gladly embraced if they had asked. However, what’s best for the team is the most important factor. He added, “And I believe they made the right decision.”
India
