Riyan Parag opened up on receiving so much criticism when he failed to deliver in the IPL for Rajasthan Royals (RR) before the last season. The youngster thinks he doesn’t deserve that much hate from the fans and also talks about how criticism makes him more mature. Parag was called up in the Indian cricket team for his maiden T20I series against Zimbabwe after his outstanding run in IPL 2024. Today, we will see what Riyan Parag has said about the difficult time, and how he dealt with it. So let’s start.
Table of Contents
Parag’s performance wasn’t up to the mark in the last few years
Riyan Parag burst onto the scene during the 2018 Under-19 World Cup, which India won by beating Australia in the final. After that, Rajasthan Royals (RR) picked him in the IPL 2018 and since then, he has been a part of the franchise till now.
The youngster showed glimpses of his talent and played a few knocks during the 2019 IPL season. But he didn’t do well consistently for the franchise afterward. Riyan Parag has been a failure for RR for the next 3-4 years.
RR showed faith in Parag even after constant failures
The RR franchise showed faith in Riyan Parag even after his constant failures in the last 4 seasons. Riyan didn’t disappoint this time and delivered as per the expectations of the franchise last season. Last season (IPL 2024), he scored lots of runs and won games for RR. RR gave him the responsibility of a finisher and played him at No. 4.
Riyan Parag becomes the third-highest run-scorer in IPL 2024. He scored 573 runs in 15 games with an average of 52.09 and with an outstanding strike rate of 149.21. Parag has 4 fifties to his name with a highest score of 84 in IPL 2024.
Riyan Parag on the trolls he gets before IPL 2024
As we discussed, Riyan Parag wasn’t performing in the IPL before this season, and the fans are questioning his place in the team. They think Parag doesn’t deserve to play in the IPL. The youngster has been doing well in domestic cricket, but couldn’t replicate those performances in the IPL for RR.
Riyan Parag, while talking to ESPNCricinfo, said a lot of things about receiving so many trolls during his non-performing days. He said it is not easy for him to deal with all those trolls. Parag said he might lack a few things in preparation, but he always tries hard to give his best. The youngsters think he didn’t deserve that much hate from the fans.
“It’s not easy. But then again, after last year, I had a chat with myself. And this sort of a comeback is personal because I had to put up with stuff I didn’t deserve. Maybe I’ve lacked in preparation, maybe I’ve lacked in a few things, but then I’ve always put my best foot forward. I thought I didn’t deserve all the trolling, but what could I do? People are going to say things regardless.” – Riyan Parag told ESPNCricinfo.
Parag also talks about how things changed after IPL 2024. “Last year they said I wasn’t good enough to play in the IPL. Now they want me in the Indian team. So people change, just like a switch.” – Parag on how performing in IPL 2024 changed the perspective of the fans.
Riyan Parag on how a difficult phase makes him a more mature person
Riyan Parag acknowledged the fact that the hard times he faced made him a more mature person than ever. He felt terrible during that phase and the opinions from outside added more to it.
“Maturity comes with pain. Millions are watching the IPL. When I don’t perform, I feel terrible. And people add to it. Opinions from fans add to it. Opinions from great players add to it. So I just had to figure out what mattered. – Parag on the other side of facing difficulties with trolls.
Parag said as soon as he figures out his game, the hate turns into love. “Why was I getting so much hate? Why was I getting negative energy from all the people except those from the Royals set-up? I tried to understand my game. And once I started doing that, I got this sudden love for getting into cricket a lot,” Parag added.
Conclusion
So this is what Riyan Parag said on dealing with trolls, a difficult phase, and a comeback. We have seen Parag getting a backlash for his behavior on and off the field as well, but he changed a lot afterward. Now, he has been in the Indian cricket team setup after his performances in IPL and domestic cricket. He got a maiden call-up for the Zimbabwe series in T20Is and is currently in Sri Lanka with the team for the T20Is and ODIs.
Parag has talent, he is mature now, and we might see him playing for India for a long time. He can be a great asset to the team.
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FAQs:-
(1) How many games Riyan Parag has played for India?
Parag has played 6 T20Is for India. He scored 57 runs with an average of 14.25 with a strike rate of 111.76. With the ball, he has 3 wickets to his name.
(2) How many runs Parag has scored in the IPL so far?
Overall, in 69 IPL games, he has scored 1173 runs with an average of 24.44 with a strike rate of 135.14. He has scored 6 fifties and has the highest score of 84 in the IPL.
(3) What’s Riyan Parag’s salary in IPL 2024?
RR paid a salary of INR 3.80 crore to Parag in IPL 2024.
