Sanju Samson Unlikely To Captain RR Against LSG Amid Rumours Of 'Rift'. Here's Why

Rajasthan Royals faced a shocking defeat against Delhi Capitals in their previous IPL 2025 match on Wednesday. It was the first IPL match since 2022, where the winner was decided in the super over. After the loss, RR faced severe criticism from cricket pundits and fans for their poor strategy, which eventually led to their loss. During the match against DC, RR also suffered a big blow as their skipper Sanju Samson was forced to retire hurt after getting hit on his chest on Vipraj Nigam's delivery.

RR will now be taking on Lucknow Super Giants for their next match on Saturday but Samson's participation is still uncertain. During the pre-match press conference on Friday, RR head coach Rahul Dravid had stated that the team is waiting for Samson's scan results, after which the decision regarding his participation will be made.

"Sanju experienced a bit of pain in the abdominal area. So we have gone for scans. He has done some scans today so we are waiting the results of those scans. And then once we get a bit more clarity around the scans and the severity of (the injury) we'll take a decision going forward and we'll see what happens," head coach Rahul Dravid said in the pre-match press conference on Friday.

It is also highly likely that Samson may play against LSG but only as impact sub, which can bring Riyan Parag back as RR's stand-in skipper. Parag led RR in the first three games of the season as Samson was recovering from a finger injury.

Apart from this, Dravid also rubbished all reports regarding any kind of rift between the franchise and Samson. Dravid called all the reports "baseless" and maintained that the team remain united in their pursuit of the playoffs.

"I don't know where these reports are coming from. Sanju and I are on the same page," Dravid said.

"He's a very integral part of our team. He's involved in each and every decision and discussion. Sometimes, when you lose games and things don't go right, you face criticism and we can take it on our performances, but we can't do anything about this baseless stuff. The spirit of the team is really good, I'm impressed with how hard these guys work. One of the things people don't understand is how hurt the players feel when they don't perform," he explained.

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