During the 2025 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Rajasthan Royals (RR) head coach Rahul Dravid has cleared and brushed aside any claims of a supposed dispute between him and the team captain Sanju Samson. Speculation emerged after a viral video captured Samson’s non-participation in a supposed group huddle during the team’s game against Delhi Capitals resulting in queries about the workings of the internal hierarchy of the team.
What initiated the Rift Speculation A little overheated
The hype started from the controversy RR’s match against Delhi Capitals when Dravid was captured mid-conversation with some of the support staff and players and Samson was seen away from the huddle refusing to join. This particular event created a lot of buzz around the availability of cohesive synergy at the leadership level.
Dravid’s Response for Sanju Samson as the Captain To the Rumors
While discussing the media before the match against Lucknow super giants, Dravid ensured he was in the context of categorically debunking the speculation of dysfunction within the team.
He remarked, “I have no idea from what sources these rumors are surfacing. Samson and I, without a doubt, share the same judgement.” It’s quite clear that facing these kinds of statements from public relations reveals the fact that Sanju is the captain revolves around shouting, he takes junction calls in decision making and discussions.”
He further added, “At times, whenever you are losing games, there comes in relentless criticism. It is easy to blame everything on us and our performances, but we can only control so much of this nonsensical stuff. Team spirit is really good, in fact, the amount of hard work these guys put in, I great…”’
Team Performance and Challenges
This is the most challenging season for the RR as they have constantly had to pay tribute to the losing side and have been desperate to shift their numbers in the points table. The team is working hard to get back in form and earn a playoff position. Dravid mentioned the hard work put in by the players: “The spirit of the players is good. And they work, still, what people do not appreciate is how much a player suffers internally when he does not perform,” he said.
Sanju Samson’s Injury Update
Also, adding further injury woes to him, Sanju Samson sustained a side strain during the game versus Delhi Capitals and was forced to leave the match after hitting 31 runs off 19 balls. Also, Dravid was attending to some of his other issues. In regard to the intervening period, he clarified, ‘Samson had a little discomfort at the abdominal side. So we have gone for scans.”
He has undergone a few scans today, so now we are waiting for the results regarding those scans. After obtaining additional information pertaining to the scans and the injury’s severity, we will reach a decision and determine the next steps from there.”
Looking Ahead
The focus for the Rajasthan Royals ahead of their upcoming matches is maintaining team cohesion and performance. Dravid’s attempts to dismiss the dispute rift theory serves the primary reason of turning focus away from distractions as well as showcase the team’s devotion towards their IPL 2025 effort. With crucial players like Samson fulfilling important roles, RR will try to overcome the hurdles and succeed during the tournament.
To summarize, while rumors and speculation circulate in high-tier tournaments such as the IPL, the sovereigns of the Rajasthan Royals seem to have kept their eyes focused on the match along with team unity. It would be interesting to see how the fans would react as the team goes through the remaining season.
