South Africa’s middle-order batsman Rassie van der Dussen will be seen in pink in the upcoming IPL as he has said that he has always been a huge fan of the Rajasthan Royals. He also said that he can’t wait to link up with the franchise after securing an IPL contract as well.
However, Van der Dussen initially went unsold, but on day two of the mega auction Royals bought him in the final session. His base price was set at Rs 1 crore, and the franchise acquired him at the same price as well. The veteran could be a massive part of their middle order as well.
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Van der Dussen said, as quoted by News24: “It feels good to be acknowledged, and I’ve always been a Rajasthan Royals fan since the early days of the IPL when the likes of Graeme Smith played there. It’s a team I’ve always followed; I’m very happy to be representing the franchise, and it’s an exciting prospect for me.”
The veteran has a good T20I record, averaging 38.87 in 34 games, scoring 933 runs and striking at 130.85. In T20 cricket, he has scored 4129 runs in 140 games at 38.23. Van der Dussen further added that he has adapted well to the middle-order role by facing challenging conditions as well. Apart from him, the Royals have Shimron Hetmyer, Daryl Mitchell, Nathan Coulter-Nile, James Neesham, Trent Boult, Obed McCoy and Jos Buttler as overseas players.
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“It’s been a long time coming. and having started my career as an opener, my game required some evolution. I feel like I’m at a stage of my career where I’ve got most aspects of my game covered from a versatility perspective. Playing in different conditions over the past few years has been really challenging, but I felt I’ve adapted well. and that’s key for a middle-order batter. One has to be adaptable. and have a particular set of skills in all aspects, as India will be a different challenge,” Van der Dussen concluded.
