Why is Riyan Parag always favored by Rajasthan Royals? Are his parents politicians?

Rajasthan Royals star Riyan Parag's parents and their links with RR owner Ranjit Barthakur seem to justify claims of favoritism in the team.

Why is Riyan Parag always favored by Rajasthan Royals? Are his parents politicians?

Riyan Parag's parentage and his father Parag Das' links with RR owner Ranjit Barthakur justify his selection as the team's stand-in captain (via India Today)

Rajasthan Royals all-rounder and the team’s stand-in skipper Riyan Parag has remained at the center of controversy in the IPL. This has intensified following two successive defeats this season. There have been questions regarding Parag’s leadership, with some claiming that he was favored owing to his connections. 

Riyan Parag became the first Assamese cricketer to captain an IPL side, as well as the first to ever play for the Indian national team. He was among the breakout stars of India’s 2018 ICC U-19 World Cup winning squad, which also included Shubman Gill, Prithvi Shaw, Abhishek Sharma and Arshdeep Singh. Parag then made his way into the IPL, after being picked up by Rajasthan Royals in 2019.

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Parag had a breakout 2024 IPL season, where he scored 573 runs at a brilliant average of 52.09, ending as the third-highest run-scorer. It was called up to make his debut for India soon after, against Zimbabwe in 2024. Parag was surprisingly named as RR’s stand-in skipper for the first three matches. It was owing to regular captain Sanju Samson’s injury, which has prevented him from wicket-keeping. 

However, under Parag’s captaincy, RR have lost two out of their first two matches, with the 23-year-old also performing poorly with the bat. It has raised some serious concerns about his abilities, with some pointing to his parentage as a reason for the unexpected push. Riyan Parag’s father, Parag Das, is a former first-class cricketer, who has represented Assam, Railways and East Zone cricket team.

His mother, Mithoo Barooah, on the other hand, is a former national record-holding swimmer. She even represented India at the Asian Championships and the SAF Games, and has several medals and accolades to her name. Meanwhile, Riyan Parag’s father is closely related to Rajasthan Royals’ owner Ranjit Barthakur, who also belongs to Assam, justifying his favorable treatment within the team.

Barthurkar is the Executive Chairman of Royal Multisport Pvt. Ltd. and is a pivotal figure in the RR management. Interestingly, Barthakur recently revealed that Riyan Parag is the sole reason behind shifting Rajasthan Royals’ opening home games to Guwahati, Assam, 2000 kms away from Jaipur. He even added that the move is aimed at promoting the 23-year-old cricketing career. 

Keeping the background in mind, it becomes easy to understand why Riyan Parag was swiftly appointed as Sanju Samson’s replacement as captain. Many fans and analysts are speculating that Parag might be handed a future leadership role.

RR head coach Rahul Dravid defends his decision to promote Riyan Parag to the no. 3 batting position 

Rajasthan Royals head coach Rahul Dravid praised the team’s stand-in skipper Riyan Parag for remaining calm and for making quick decisions. Moreover, Dravid also defended his decision of sending the 23-year-old up the RR batting order at number 3, contrary to his previous role as a finisher.

Rahul Dravid on Riyan Parag
RR head coach Rahul Dravid defended his decision to send Riyan Parag up the team’s batting order. (via ESPN Cricinfo)

Riyan Parag enjoyed a breakthrough 2024 season batting at no.4, as he became the first player to score more than 550 runs in a season from that position. Following Jos Buttler’s departure this season, Parag has earned yet another promotion up the batting order. He is being sent up the order, behind openers Sanju Samson and Yashasvi Jaiswal.

Rahul Dravid stated that the decision was made to maximize Parag’s abilities and give him as many balls as needed. He even went on label Riyan Parag as one of the team’s best batters. Dravid, however, did not rule out the prospect of a change in the batting order, if necessary.

Look, Riyan [Parag] is one of our best batters… And we want to give him as many balls as we possibly can. 20 overs is a very short time and the more balls he bats for us, the better it is for us as a team.

Rahul Dravid on Riyan Parag (H/T ESPN Cricinfo)

Riyan Parag is yet to fire this season at no.3, and has scores of 4 and 25 in Rajasthan’s first two matches. He will be relinquishing his captaincy when Sanju Samson make his full return to the side in their 4th match against Punjab Kings on 5 April.