in his preview, shashank kishore of "espncricinfo" wrote that while royals have "great depth" in their squad they "need strategic precision" in the season. he concluded his analysis saying, "even if a top-two finish may seem far-fetched, they will definitely be in the running for third or fourth." "firstpost" stated that indian players will "dictate to a great extent [..] the balance of the side [and] their position in two months time" and opined that they have the players "to improve on their playoff finish from last year." "news18" termed the "lack of a world-class spinner" as the team's weakness and suggested that the team "might suffer in the latter stages of the tournament" if their overseas players leave for world cup preparations.