New Delhi, May 8 (HS): Rajasthan Royals (RR), struggling with the issue of injured players in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, have made two significant changes to their team. After Nitish Rana and Sandeep Sharma were ruled out of the tournament due to injuries, the franchise has added South African players Luan-Dre Pretorius and Nandre Burger to the team.
Lhuan-Dre Pretorius replaces Nitish Rana
Rajasthan Royals have included Lhuan-Dre Pretorius in place of the injured Nitish Rana. Nitish Rana played two impressive innings for RR this season, scoring 81 runs off 36 balls against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Guwahati and 51 runs off 28 balls against Delhi Capitals (DC) in Delhi.
According to an IPL statement, Rajasthan Royals (RR) have brought Luan-Dre Pretorius into the team as Nitish Rana is out for the remaining matches of the Tata Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 due to injury.
The 19-year-old Pretorius is an aggressive left-handed opening batsman and wicketkeeper. He has been signed by Rajasthan for ₹3 million. Although he has not yet made his debut in international cricket, he performed exceptionally well in the 2025 SA20, scoring 397 runs in 12 matches, with a strike rate of 166.80. Playing for Paarl Royals, he played a blistering innings of 97 runs off 51 balls against Sunrisers Eastern Cape.
He was subsequently signed by England’s Hampshire team for the Vitality Blast. He was also the top scorer for South Africa in the 2024 Under-19 World Cup.
Nandre Burger replaces Sandeep Sharma
Fast bowler Sandeep Sharma took 9 wickets in 10 matches this season, but suffered a finger injury while attempting to stop a shot from Shubman Gill against Gujarat Titans, which led to his omission. In his place, South African fast bowler Nandre Burger has been added to the team for ₹35 million. Burger was also with Rajasthan Royals last season.
According to the IPL statement, Rajasthan Royals (RR) have included Nandre Burger in the team for the remaining matches of the Tata Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 in place of the injured Sandeep Sharma.
Rajasthan Royals out of playoffs
Rajasthan Royals’ performance this season has been disappointing. The team has managed to win only 3 out of 12 matches and is currently in ninth place in the points table. They have already been knocked out of the playoff race. Sunrisers Hyderabad and Chennai Super Kings have also been eliminated.
Rajasthan Royals have two matches left in IPL 2025, with the first against CSK in Chennai on May 12 and the second against Punjab Kings in Jaipur on May 16.
Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
