Rajasthan Royals are having a terrible time in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). So far, the Sanju Samson-led side has lost three matches out of five as the players crave for consistency. In their recent match against Gujarat Titans, RR lost by 58 runs after they failed to chase down the target of 218. Speaking about the team’s sudden downfall, former India batter Robin Uthappa slammed RR and stated the team management failed to make a strong squad at the mega auctions.

Ahead of the mega auctions, RR released the likes of Jos Buttler, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravichandran Ashwin, among others. Uthappa stated that letting go of Buttler proved to be expensive for the 2008 champions.

“And I think that’s where RR got it wrong in the in the auctions didn’t they. I think the fact that they let the likes of Jos Butler go, Ashwin go, Yuzi Chahal go, they just left too many holes. Like today, if Shimron Hetmyer gets injured, they don’t have a replacement for him, which makes us ask that question that how does that actually work for them,” said Uthappa on Star Sports.

Former Australia star Shane Watson, who was also a part of the discussion, stated that the bond between Samson and Buttler had a positive impact on the team.

“The connection that Sanju has as a leader with Jos Butler really does have a huge influence in and around the group as well. So there are other factors around not just your cricket performance on the field that add so much value, which is why it just continues to blow me away that the Rajasthan Royals didn’t retain him,” said Watson.

Meanwhile, RR skipper Sanju Samson was fined Rs 24 lakh after his team maintained a slow over-rate during the IPL 2025 encounter against Gujarat Titans on Wednesday.

It was a bad day for RR as they were completely outplayed by GT and the Samson-led side slumped to a 58-run defeat. Samson was fined for breaching the IPL code of conduct and this was the second time that RR maintained a slow over-rate during this year’s competition.

Earlier, following the match against Chennai Super Kings, stand-in captain Riyan Parag was fined Rs 12 lakh.