IPL 2021: 'Senior' Chris Morris ready to guide Sanju Samson & Rajasthan Royals in UAE

South Africa's all-rounder Chris Morris stressed that he will take on himself to guiding the youngsters and aid Sanju Samson to lead Rajasthan Royals as the second half of the IPL is underway in the United Arab Emirates. Morris said that he will be rallying behind the young players of the team and assist Sanju Samson to lead Rajasthan Royals since he is one of the senior-most players in the team due to the unavailability of Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes.

"We have so many experienced players in the team, I will be at mid-off and mid-on, I’ll be having a chat with the bowlers. If we pick anything, we always relay that to captain Sanju. As a senior player, the role is to keep the players calm and I think there is pressure on players, you always need an idea,” said Morris in a webinar organised by Rajasthan Royals.

"Yeah, I will be helping the captain anyway, whether the likes of Jos Buttler or Ben Stokes are available or not, I have been doing that my whole career. I will be helping Sanju. It is a part of the gig I suppose,” Chris Morris said.

Rajasthan Royals are currently positioned at fifth in the IPL standings with six points after three wins and four losses. The Royals have been highly inconsistent and will be hoping that pre-season rustiness does not hamper their chances to make it to the play-offs. The Royals have brought in some exciting young talents like Liam Livingstone, Glen Phillips, Evin Lewis, Oshane Thomas and Tabraiz Shamsi to extend their overseas strength.

IPL 2021: Chirs Morris suggests some players might be rusty at the start

Morris also said that some players would indeed struggle to get going and have match fitness after a long break due to the COVID pandemic. “I think match-readiness is probably going to be an issue. Same as IPL last year in Dubai, guys took a couple of matches to get rustiness out of their bones. I think the fortunate thing for us is that people have been playing a lot of cricket, especially overseas players. I have been pre-season at home, I think match-fitness is always the best type of fitness,” said Chris Morris.

Rajasthan Royals resume their IPL 2021 campaign against Punjab Kings on 21st September at the Dubai International Stadium.

(Image: PTI)