‘No slipping up anymore’ – Rahul Dravid urges RR consistency for RCB ahead match

In Match 42 of the 2025 Indian Premier League, the Rajasthan Royals (RR) will play Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on April 24. Prior to the match, Rahul Dravid, the head coach of RR, praised the team’s recent results and noted that they have lost a few close games while playing some excellent cricket.

In addition, the great cricketer emphasised the significance of stepping up when it counts and the necessity of returning to the game.

“Is the RCB player from the last time here? Put him right into the starting lineup. Man, no, not at all. To be honest, that’s not how I think about it. We are only trying to play cricket well because we know that in order to survive this competition, we must play well. I am aware that we have lost a few close matches before today, but we have also played some excellent cricket. Dravid was cited as saying, “It’s one of those tournaments where a few balls go here or there and we might have been in a slightly different position, but you need to play well in those critical moments.”

Expect a high-scoring contest: Rahul Dravid

The former Indian cricketer noted that while teams must go for it regardless of conditions, each surface plays differently. The right-handed batter admitted that it was not ideal for judgment and believes the current wicket appears promising for a high-scoring game. The former RCB player emphasised the importance of winning consistently, given RR’scurrent position.

“I mean, you just have to go for it irrespective and that’s a given, But I think every surface will be different. I think the last one, just having a chat with the groundsman, was under covers for a really long period of time, so it was probably not a good one to judge it on. The wicket I’m seeing here, from at least what I can make of it, looks like a really good wicket, so I can’t really say how those wickets looked in earlier games,” the Indore-born said.

“But the track that’s been produced for this one looks actually to be a very good cricket wicket and I think it should be a pretty high-scoring game. Like I said earlier, it’s a very important game for us. Every game from here on, the position we find ourselves in, we can’t afford to make many mistakes. We’ve got to start climbing that table quickly and we’ve got to start winning games quickly, there are no options, no chances of slipping up anymore,” he added.

Limited home advantage due to mega auction: Rahul Dravid

The RR coach further went on to mention uncertainty about what franchises specifically expected from curators or pitch conditions. The Bengaluru-born cricketer noted that home advantage might not be as significant this season, as it is the first year after a major auction and emphasised that many players, despite being part of home teams, are new to their current grounds and setups.

“I’m not really sure what specific franchises might have wanted from their curators or from their pitches, But yeah, I think home advantage, generally, the teams are new as well, right? It’s the first year of a big auction cycle, so for a lot of the players, even though they may be your home players, they are playing for those teams or those grounds for the first time,” Dravid said on the pitch conditions at Chinnaswamy.