Rajasthan Royals batting coach Vikram Rathour says his team can still qualify for the IPL play-offs by winning its remaining two league matches, asserting that the side has the ability to beat any opponent if it plays to its potential.Placed sixth in the standings with 12 points, RR face Lucknow Super Giants at home on May 19 before travelling to take on Mumbai Indians in their final league fixture on May 24.”We are planning to win every match. It’s not that we are waiting for the last two matches to win. Every game is important for us and we are trying to win,” Rathour said at the post-match press conference.”The situation is that we have to win both the games. Our belief is that if we are playing to our potential, we can defeat any team. That is the mindset. We need to turn up and play our best cricket,” he said.Rathour also provided an update on senior spin-all rounder Ravindra Jadeja, saying the team management had opted to rest him as a precaution because of a knee niggle.”He just had some niggle in his knee. They felt that if we give him one more game break, it will be good for him. That was the reason he was rested today,” he said.Backing the team’s young batters, Rathour said players should focus on their individual strengths rather than trying to imitate others.”Different players will bat differently. Anybody can succeed. You need to identify and know your strengths. If you back your strengths and play to your strengths, you can score runs,” he said.Referring to modern T20 batting approaches, Rathour pointed to Virat Kohli as an example of a player succeeding without relying solely on power-hitting.”I wouldn’t call him an out-and-out power-hitting player. That tells you there is scope for everybody to succeed, provided you have belief in your abilities,” he said.On RR’s tactical decisions during the match, Rathour said the side had initially planned to use six bowling options but had to alter the strategy after losing wickets in clusters.”Our initial idea was to take six bowlers. But because we lost those wickets too quickly, we had to pick Dasun (Shanka) as an impact player. Inside, at that point of time, it’s the captain who takes the call.”Rathour also revealed skipper Riyan Parag had been dealing with a hamstring niggle.”Riyan is also having a niggle with his hamstring, so I am not sure how comfortable he was bowling,” he said.Praising opener Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s aggressive batting, Rathour said the youngster remained a “special player” despite occasional weaknesses.”Nobody is perfect in this world, so everybody will have some weakness here and there. He’s a special player. He’s provided us a really good start. I just hope he converts one innings and goes deeper,” he said.


