Related Link: Shane Watson Player Page
IPL 2013 Match 40 RR v RCB (Photo credit: Royal Challengers Bangalore)
Australian all-rounder Shane Watson has been named as the new Captain of the Rajasthan Royals for the upcoming IPL 7.
The Rajasthan Royals’ management had to make this move following the retirement of Rahul Dravid from all formats of cricket after the Champions League last year.
The 32-year-old Watson will be the third full-term Captain of the Rajasthan Royals after Shane Warne and Rahul Dravid.
Shane Watson has been a loyal player for Rajasthan Royals representing them since the very first IPL edition in 2008. The hard-hitting Australian batsman is one of the five players retained by the Rajasthan Royals in the recently held IPL Auction. For the record, Shane Watson has played 61 T20s for the Rajasthan Royals, the second most capped player of the franchise after medium pacer Siddharth Trivedi.
According to the IPL official website, Shane Watson is quoted to have said: “I am honoured to lead the Rajasthan Royals, an extraordinary team which has always given me amazing opportunities. Shane Warne and Rahul Dravid had a lot of faith in me while they were captains and gave me opportunities that helped improve my cricket. I hope to live up to the confidence shown in me by the franchise and give our fans an exciting season of cricket. I would like to thank our fans for showing trust in me through their votes on the digital medium. The Royals are one big family and I feel very privileged to be a part of such a special franchise.”
“My aim will be to continue playing our best cricket and maintain the winning momentum. We all want to repeat the 2008 IPL success and last season, we were quite close to that. I am confident that we can do it again,” Watson added.
Rahul Dravid who has handed over the Captaincy to Watson is quoted to have said: “I would like to congratulate Shane Watson on his appointment as the Captain of the Royals. He is not only one of the world’s best all-rounders, but a leader par excellence. Watson has been with the team since the first season and is familiar with the players and the staff. The Royals Squad is a bunch of extremely energetic and talented players who know their roles perfectly well and I am sure they will thrive under Watson’s inspiring leadership.”
Also making a statement on Shane Watson’s appointment as the Rajasthan Royals’ Captain was Raghu Iyer, the franchise CEO who is quoted to have said: “We are delighted to announce Watson as Captain. He epitomises all the values of the Royals franchise with his true grit and never-say-die attitude. His skills and experience will surely help the team build on the superb performance last season. His presence in the team will also help young players like Sanju Samson, Unmukt Chand, James Faulkner, Steve Smith and Tim Southee.” He added, “We’d also like to thank our fans who have supported us unstintingly and came out strongly on the digital medium in favour of Watto as Captain for the upcoming seasons! We are confident all Royals fans will get behind Watson and the team and drive us to perform our best on the field.”
