IPL 2021 player retention: Sanju Samson to lead Rajasthan Royals; Stokes, Buttler retained

IPL 2021: Rajasthan Royals on Wednesday parted ways with Steve Smith and named Sanju Samson as the captain.

Big responsibility for Sanju Samson.

Indian Premier League side Rajasthan Royals on Wednesday parted ways with Steve Smith and named Sanju Samson as the captain for the 2021 edition of the tournament.

The franchise, which finished at the bottom of the table in the last edition of the tournament, has decided to name hand over the captaincy to Sanju - who has been one of the old warhorses of the side. While it has released some of the Indian recruits - Ankit Rajpoot, Varun Aaron, Akash Singh - the side has shown faith in seasoned campaigners Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Robin Uthappa.

READ: Rajasthan Royals releases Steve Smith The side will also be joined by Sri Lankan legend Kumar Sangakkara as the director of cricket.

RR had a dismal outing in IPL 2020, having finished at the bottom of the table with 12 points. IPL 2021 is set to be held between April and May and efforts are on to host the tournament in India.

Players retained: Sanju Samson (captain), Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Jos Buttler, Riyan Parag, Shreyas Gopal, Rahul Tewatia, Mahipal Lomror, Kartik Tyagi, Andrew Tye, Jaydev Unadkat, Mayank Markande, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Anuj Rawat, David Miller, Manan Vohra, Robin Uthappa. Released players:  Steve Smith, Ankit Rajpoot, Oshane Thomas, Akash Singh, Varun Aaron, Tom Curran, Anirudha Joshi, Shashank Singh.