Mumbai, May 25: Rajasthan Royals (RR) have qualified for the IPL 2026 playoffs. On Sunday, they defeated Mumbai Indians (MI) by 30 runs at Wankhede Stadium, securing the fourth position. After the match, RR captain Riyan Parag expressed that they should have qualified much earlier. “We delayed it,” he stated.
Parag remarked, “It’s great when things go according to plan. I know we won the match and qualified, but there are still many areas where we can improve.”
Regarding the decision to send Archer at seventh and Jadeja at ninth, Parag explained, “We needed runs. This pitch doesn’t allow two batsmen to score on every ball. We wanted one batsman to take risks while the other stayed solid. Jadeja was reliable as always. I knew he would give us at least 20 runs in the last ten balls, and he did just that. Honestly, I’ve made many bold decisions this season. I enjoy captaining this way.”
When asked about bringing Archer back to bowl for Hardik’s wicket, Parag said, “I thought there was only one player who could get Hardik out, and that was Jofra. This decision proved beneficial.”
On young bowlers Brijesh and Yash Raj, Parag commented, “I usually don’t praise them to keep their feet on the ground, but both deserve accolades tonight. They bowled excellently.”
Speaking about his fitness, Parag admitted, “I’m not fully fit. I played due to my mental strength. I wasn’t supposed to play today.”
Discussing injuries to Archer and Jadeja while securing a playoff spot, Parag said, “Jofra is completely fine. He’s as strong as a rock. Jadeja has some discomfort, but he’s a warrior and will return. We should have qualified much earlier; we delayed it too long. We missed several opportunities and have been trailing in three consecutive matches. Hopefully, we will learn from our mistakes and perform better.”
In the match, Rajasthan Royals, batting first after losing the toss, scored 205 runs for 8 wickets. Dhruv Jurel made 38, Jofra Archer scored 32, Dasun Shanaka contributed 29, Yashasvi Jaiswal added 27, Ravindra Jadeja remained unbeaten on 19, and Donovan Ferreira scored 18 runs.
Chasing a target of 206 runs, Mumbai Indians managed only 175 runs for 9 wickets, losing the match by 30 runs. For RR, Archer took 3 wickets, while Nandre Burger, Brijesh Sharma, and Yash Raj Punja each claimed 2 wickets. Archer was named Player of the Match.
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