I am a diehard fan of the Rajasthan Royals even though I am from Bengaluru, which already has an IPL franchise. The reasons are:
RR is a team which doesn’t have too many world-class or flashy players, relying more on uncapped and unknown Indian and international talent. These players are supported and backed to the hilt by the RR management, which gives them encouragement and motivation to play well. They give chance in at least a single match to most of the players in the team, giving them good exposure and experience against quality opposition. The Royals have even encouraged players who never played first-class cricket, such as Pravin Tambe. Due to this support from the RR management, many world-class players have come out from the RR stable, including Ajinkya Rahane(who earlier played for Mumbai Indians, but was never given enough chances there to prove his credentials), Stuart Binny, Sanju Samson, James Faulkner, Shane Watson, Steve Smith, Ravindra Jadeja and Yusuf Pathan. In short, RR grooms raw talents into established and world-class players, encouraging the very reason the IPL was established.
Despite having a young and inexperienced squad, the Royals have always punched above their weight, never withered under pressure and have performed well in every IPL held so far due to their team unity and never-say-die approach.
The team always play within the spirit of the game and there is lot of camaraderie and team spirit among the players. Every Royal plays for the team and not for his individual gain. Unlike other franchises, there is also no disconnect and communication gap between the Indian and international players.
The presence of Rahul Dravid, my favourite cricketer, as the mentor of the team, adds to my support for RR.