Riyan Parag Buries Vaping Controversy With Captain’s Knock, Ashwin Calls Him ‘Special Player’

Riyan Parag silenced his critics in style, coming up with a valuable 90-run knock against Delhi Capitals on Friday in Jaipur. The skipper took charge after the Rajasthan Royals lost both their openers – Yashasvi Jaiswal and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi – within the Powerplay. Joining forces with Dhrul Jurel, the Royals captain stitched a century partnership for the third wicket before forging another 50-run stand with Ravindra Jadeja. Although he fell prey to Mitchell Starc in the 17th over, he pulled RR out of what looked like an early collapse. The vaping incident had put Parag under a lot of scrutiny until his bat did all the talking. Impressed with the captain’s knock, former RR star Ravichandran Ashwin heaped massive praise on Parag. Taking to his X account, Ashwin called Parag a special player. "Agree or not, Riyan Parag is a special player. He is letting his bat do all the talking today," Ashwin wrote. Parag bounced back strongly with a 50-ball 90, his first fifty-plus score of the season, while Donovan Ferreira played a blistering, unbeaten 47 off 14 balls as Rajasthan Royals posted 225/6 against Delhi Capitals on Friday. Under pressure after the vaping controversy against the Punjab Kings, Parag rebuilt the innings with Dhruv Jurel (42) following early blows. Yashasvi Jaiswal (6) and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (4) were dismissed inside the first two overs, leaving RR in trouble. For DC, Mitchell Starc made a solid comeback, returning figures of 3/40 and removing Parag at a crucial stage.

(Source：News 18)