{"id":7647,"date":"2026-05-05T11:59:56","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T11:59:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/manjrekar-questions-rrs-riyan-parag-captaincy-call-for-ipl-2026"},"modified":"2026-05-05T11:59:56","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T11:59:56","slug":"manjrekar-questions-rrs-riyan-parag-captaincy-call-for-ipl-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/manjrekar-questions-rrs-riyan-parag-captaincy-call-for-ipl-2026","title":{"rendered":"Manjrekar Questions RR\u2019s Riyan Parag Captaincy Call for IPL 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar has taken aim at Rajasthan Royals\u2019 call to name Riyan Parag as the franchise\u2019s full-time captain for IPL 2026. The ex-top-order campaigner believes Parag\u2019s defining quality is an almost startling level of self-belief, but he questioned whether that confidence is being rewarded at the right time and for the right reasons.<\/p>\n<h3>Quick facts<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Sanjay Manjrekar criticised Rajasthan Royals for appointing Riyan Parag as full-time captain for IPL 2026.<\/li>\n<li>Manjrekar said Parag\u2019s biggest trait is \u201cunbelievable\u201d self-confidence.<\/li>\n<li>He argued RR have made Parag a star despite limited batting output over the years.<\/li>\n<li>Parag has been with RR since 2019.<\/li>\n<li>Last week, Parag was involved in a controversy after being caught vaping in the dressing room during the match against Punjab Kings.<\/li>\n<li>Manjrekar referenced that Sanju Samson captained RR earlier before being removed, with Parag taking over afterward.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Manjrekar pointed to Parag\u2019s presence and attitude as a key talking point, describing him as far from the usual template of an Indian player. He said Parag often looks physically fit and carries himself with a swagger, even while performances at the crease have not consistently backed up the confidence.<\/p>\n<p>He also questioned the logic behind the promotion, suggesting that Parag\u2019s elevation doesn\u2019t add up from a cricketing standpoint. In Manjrekar\u2019s view, the reward has come \u201ctoo big\u201d for returns that he labelled as mediocre, arguing that the player hasn\u2019t \u201cworked hard\u201d enough to deserve such a leap.<\/p>\n<p>Manjrekar drew attention to the captaincy timeline at RR, saying Sanju Samson had led the side for a few years before being dropped and replaced by Parag. While he avoided pinpointing the internal reasons, he insisted the shift doesn\u2019t make sense to him, especially when judged purely on cricketing merit.<\/p>\n<h3>Confidence that can cut both ways<\/h3>\n<p>While criticising the decision, Manjrekar was clear that Parag\u2019s confidence is real\u2014and that is precisely what makes him intriguing. He said even in periods when Parag was not delivering with bat, his fielding and on-field actions still stood out, creating the sense of a player who is convinced of his own impact.<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, Manjrekar warned that overconfidence can become a trap. He described Parag\u2019s pattern as one built around sensational batting moments\u2014arriving, landing a couple of sharp shots, and then getting out shortly after\u2014before the next match brings the same cycle again.<\/p>\n<p>In his assessment, the captain\u2019s mindset pushes Parag to keep going after the attacking shots, even when they are not consistently coming off. Because he mis-hits so often and departs early, Manjrekar believes it prevents him from staying fully locked in on each scoring opportunity, leaving him as an \u201cinteresting character\u201d under pressure.<\/p>\n<p>Wrapping up his comments, Manjrekar singled out the central issue: RR\u2019s captaincy backing for a player whose temperament, in his view, is both a strength and a weakness. He said he has never fully understood RR\u2019s reasoning behind the appointment, given the gap between the confidence Parag shows and the batting output he has produced.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar has taken aim at Rajasthan Royals\u2019 call to name Riyan Parag as the franchise\u2019s full-time captain for IPL 2026. The&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":7644,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"IPL 2026: Manjrekar Questions Riyan Parag RR Captaincy","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Sanjay Manjrekar questions Rajasthan Royals\u2019 decision to make Riyan Parag full-time captain for IPL 2026\u2014does confidence translate into results?","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7647","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ipl"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>IPL 2026: Manjrekar Questions Riyan Parag RR Captaincy<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Sanjay Manjrekar questions Rajasthan Royals\u2019 decision to make Riyan Parag full-time captain for IPL 2026\u2014does confidence translate into results?\" 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