A struggling and already out of playoff contention in the Indian Premier League 2025, Rajasthan Royals have announced South African Lhuan-dre Pretorius as a replacement for injured Nitish Rana, who has been ruled out of the remainder of IPL 2025 due to a calf injury.
A promising wicketkeeper batter, Pretorius is yet to make his international debut for South Africa but has shown immense talent with the bat. He has scored 911 runs in 33 T20 matches in his career with a highest score of 97. The left-hander will join Rajasthan for his base price of INR 30 Lakh.
The 20-year-old was South Africa’s top run-scorer at the ICC Under-19 World Cup in 2024. He was also the highest run-getter in the SA20 2024/25 season. Playing for the Rajasthan Royals’ Paarl franchise, named Paarl Royals, Pretorious scored 397 runs in 12 innings, averaging over 33, while his strike rate was an impressive 166.80.
???????? Fearless. Power-packed. Royal!
You’ve seen him in Pink — and you’ll see him soon in IPL 2025. ????
Lhuan dre Pretorius steps in for Nitish Rana, who’s healing from a calf injury. Speedy recovery, Nitish bhai! ???? pic.twitter.com/B2JzFUlKZo
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) May 8, 2025
Nitish has been one of the standout batters for an under-fire Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2025. The left-hand batter scored 217 runs in 11 matches at an average of 21.70. His tally for the season includes two half-centuries – a match-winning 81 off 36 balls against Chennai Super Kings in Guwahati and a 51 off 28 against Delhi Capitals in Delhi.
Nitish was playing XI throughout the season before being replaced by Kunal Singh Rathore for Rajasthan’s last game against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens due to a niggle. He has now been ruled out for the rest of the season.
RR have two matches left to play this season. They will face CSK in Chennai before returning home to Jaipur to host Punjab Kings at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium for their final game of the season. Apart from Rajasthan, Chennai Super Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad have officially been out of the playoff race this season.