Following Rajasthan Royals' defeat to Gujarat Titans, fast bowling coach Shane Bond expressed his disappointment with the team's performance, emphasising the need for bowlers to enhance their skills in the increasingly batting-friendly conditions.

The Royals suffered their seventh loss in eight matches at home in Jaipur, with Gujarat Titans’ openers Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan compiling a dominant partnership to help their side post a total exceeding 220 runs. Despite an aggressive start from Rajasthan Royals, they were unable to reach the target.

Speaking at the post-match press conference, Bond acknowledged the impact of the tight schedule, noting, “The five games we had every three days, I think we were pretty banged up after that. We were not quite as sharp.” He added, “It was a disappointing performance from us. This was a really big game for us, with both games on the same points. Have not seen the table in terms of net run-rate, but we will have to win two of our last three or maybe all three to make it through the playoffs.”

Bond also addressed the team’s struggle to extract runs from the middle order, highlighting West Indies batter Shimron Hetmyer’s form, who has scored only 78 runs in seven innings this season, compared to his strong T20 World Cup performance. “Hettie (Hetmyer) would be first one to admit that he did not get the runs that he would have liked. But that is the nature of the game,” Bond said. He referenced the challenge of defending a total of 230 runs and noted the difficulty posed by Rashid Khan’s bowling.

Regarding the evolving nature of T20 batting, Bond commented on bowlers needing to adapt to batters’ increasing shot-making abilities, such as upper cuts, reverse sweeps, and scoops. “Bowlers have to develop their skills as well. For them, it is an opportunity to be like: ‘I can do that, I can elevate myself into a lot of money and be a superstar’. But we have not seen that consistently across the board. It is not easy for bowlers. But either you fear what is going on, or just see it as an opportunity to do better and put your name in the lights, especially if you are an Indian,” he said.

Bond dismissed concerns over the pitch conditions in Jaipur, describing the wicket as “really good” and stating, “We just did not execute as well as we needed to.” He reflected on conceding totals around 230 runs in three consecutive matches and noted missed opportunities due to dropped catches. “We have trained well here but not translated into performances. You want to win on your home ground. GT were excellent from ball one, Shubman and Sai played beautifully and the bowling was excellent. They were just excellent,” he concluded.