Rajasthan Royals’ (RR) wait for their 2nd IPL glory has prolonged further after they finished at 9th position in the IPL 2025. The management is desperate to end their long run and are targeting IPL 2026. In this article, we take a look at RR Target Players List 2026 IPL season.
Under the leadership of the legendary Australian spin bowler Shane Warne, Rajasthan Royals became the inaugural IPL champions in 2008. But since then, their wait for the 2nd title has continued and came as close as finishing runners-up in 2023.
After qualifying for the playoffs in 2024, it was a total flip in form for the Royals who finished at 9th place in the IPL 2025 points table, just ahead of bottom placed Chennai Super Kings. Throughout their campaign, they won only 4 matches and lost 10.
Now ahead of the IPL 2026 season, there is lots of work for the Royals with captain Sanju Samson set to leave the franchise. In this article, we have named some players RR Target Players List 2026 IPL season.
Table of Contents
RR Retained Players List IPL 2026
Ravindra Jadeja (trade in from Chennai Super Kings), Sam Curran (trade in from Chennai Super Kings), Donovan Ferreira (trade in from Delhi Capitals), Sandeep Sharma, Shubham Dubey, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Lhuan-Dre Pretorius, Shimron Hetmyer, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Jofra Archer, Tushar Deshpande, Kwena Maphaka, Nandre Burger.
Rajasthan Royals Released Players List 2026 IPL
Sanju Samson (trade out to Chennai Super Kings), Nitish Rana (trade out to Delhi Capitals), Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Kunal Singh Rathore, Akash Madhwal, Kumar Kartikeya, Ashok Sharma.
RR Squad Analysis
Strength
- Despite the departure of captain Sanju Samson, Rajasthan Royals’ batting is their biggest strength with the likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel etc.
- Rajasthan Royals batting is top-order heavy with the likes of Jaiswal, Suryavanshi, Riyan Parag, Lhuan-dre Pretorius etc.
Areas to Improve
- The Royals have a top heavy batting but not so many lower-order or finishers in the team.
- Rajasthan Royals lack Indian and overseas all-rounders in the squad.
- Despite Jofra Archer, RR still need improvement in their pace bowling unit as well as spin bowling unit and would certainly be one of the key points in RR Target Players List 2026 IPL season.
RR Target Players 2026
| PLAYER | ROLE |
| David Miller | Batter |
| Aaron Hardie | All-rounder |
| James Coles | All-rounder |
| Matt Henry | Pacer |
| Jason Behrendorff | Pacer |
| Rehan Ahmed | Spinner |
| Adam Zampa | Spinner |
| Rahul Chahar | Spinner |
| Lalit Yadav | Spinner |
| Tushar Raheja | Wicketkeeper Batter |
| Vishnu Vinod | Wicketkeeper Batter |
| Tejaswi Dahiya | Wicketkeeper Batter |
Rajasthan Royals Overseas Target Players
David Miller
The South African David Miller could be a great option for the Rajasthan Royals. Miller has previously played for the franchise and he is one of the best middle-order/ lower middle-order batter in the IPL. He was with the Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL 2025 season but has recently been doing fairly well. He is able to build the inning and is also great at playing aggressive knocks when needed.
Aaron Hardie
Australian all-rounder Aaron Hardie can be a great pick for the Rajasthan Royals. Hardie is a powerful batter who has the ability to smack the ball clear of the fence. He can also bowl medium pace. He was a part of the Punjab Kings squad for IPL 2025 and might be released by the franchise as he didn’t play any match.
James Coles
English all-rounder James Coles is one of the terrific upcoming talents from English domestic cricket. Coles generally bat at number 5-6 and is a stylish batter who hits shots at ease. He is a great 6th bowling option as the left-arm orthodox spin bowler who is well capable of taking wickets. Coles is likely to be available for base price and would be a bargain deal.
Matt Henry
The New Zealand cricket team’s pace bowler Matt Henry is an outstanding bowler who has been terrific over the last 24 months. He has been playing cricket across the world in various T20 leagues and for the New Zealand team and has been excelling. He is a pace bowler who can clock 140+ and bowls at great line and length. He would be a solid option in RR Target Players List 2026 IPL season.
Jason Behrendorff
Australian left-arm pacer Jason Behrendorff is also going to be a great acquisition for the Royals in the IPL 2026 auction. Jason has been playing T20 leagues across the world and has done well. He has previously played two seasons in the IPL for Mumbai Indians and took 19 wickets. However, he hasn’t been getting a chance at the IPL again after 2023 and at 36, he can deliver solid 2 seasons for the Royals.
Rehan Ahmed
Spin bowling was one of the biggest issues for the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL 2025. England’s Rehan Ahmed could be a perfect replacement for the Sri Lankan Wanindu Hasaranga. Rehan is still 21 and has been a regular for the England team in all formats of the game. He has never played in the IPL before but is a great googly bowler but can also bat, giving vibes like Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan.
Adam Zampa
Australian spin bowler Adam Zampa is currently one of the best spin bowlers in the world. He has had a very stop and start career in the IPL, but he has already displayed his calibre in the tournament before and would be a great pick for the Rajasthan Royals. He has been in great form too, recently taking 9 wickets in 4 T20 Blast matches.
RR Target Players Indian
Rahul Chahar
Rahul Chahar can also be an option that the Royals might consider for their Indian spin bowling option. Chahar is a googly bowler who despite immense talent, hasn’t had many chances in the IPL. He could be available for base price.
Lalit Yadav
Off-spin bowler Lalit Yadav can be another great pick for the Royals. Lalit is one of the key spin bowlers in the Delhi state cricket team’s squad. He has previously been a part of the Delhi Capitals in four seasons and has also contributed with wickets. Yet, he was unsold in IPL 2025 Mega Auction. Rajasthan Royals could take advantage of that and sign for very cheap. He is also a handy batting option at 8.
Tushar Raheja
With Sanju Samson set to depart, Tushar Raheja would be a solid wicketkeeper-batter addition to the Rajasthan Royals team. Raheja was in brilliant form in the TNPL 2025 season as he scored 488 runs in 9 matches with a strike rate of 185.55.
Vishnu Vinod
Kerala’s Vishnu Vinod would be another solid wicketkeeper batter option for the Royals. He was a part of the Mumbai Indians team in the IPL 2025 but didn’t play any match. He is likely to be released and could be available for around INR 2-3 crore.
Tejaswi Dahiya
24-year-old wicketkeeper batter Tejaswi Dahiya took the Delhi Premier League (DPL) 2025 by storm as he raced to 339 runs in 10 innings while playing for the South Delhi Superstarz at a strike rate over 190, showing his ability to hit the ball out of the park in the those last 5-6 overs.
RR Probable XI after IPL 2026 Auction
Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Shimron Hetmyer, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Sam Curran, Jofra Archer, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Sharma.
Impact Players: Shubham Dubey/Yudvir Singh
NOTE: This is only our prediction and the actual RR Target Players List 2026 IPL might be different.
