The Indian star batter and Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson has allegedly requested his team to release him prior to the IPL 2026 season. Following this news, a number of IPL teams have shown interest in acquiring this aggressive hitter.
Among them, the group whose name is being used the most is Chennai Super Kings (CSK). A lot of people feel that CSK is eyeing Samson as a potential replacement for their great captain, MS Dhoni. Dhoni has been the backbone of Chennai Super Kings since the beginning of IPL in 2008. It is extremely hard for the franchise to find a suitable replacement for him.
Ashwin’s Future at CSK in Doubt
The speculations became more intense after a report by ESPNcricinfo reported that Ravichandran Ashwin could be willing to bid farewell to CSK. Ashwin has also requested the CSK authority to clearly outline his role in the next season. This led fans to believe that CSK could trade Ashwin to RR for Samson.
But as per a new report by Cricbuzz, such an exchange is not going to be possible. The reason being that RR has reportedly made a request to CSK to release key players. Either Ravindra Jadeja or Ruturaj Gaikwad in exchange for Samson. But CSK does not want to accept this proposal. Both Jadeja and Gaikwad are the main players of this Chennai-based team.
The Cricbuzz report further states that RR owner Manoj Badale has been negotiating with other IPL teams who are willing to exchange their players for Samson. There is a possibility that RR might have already come to an agreement with one such team.
If the trade does not occur, another option is that Samson can be seen entering the mini-auction, which will most likely be held in November or December this year. Yet, as most teams express interest in him, his new team will likely be determined prior to the auction itself.
The 2025 season of the IPL for Samson was not a successful one, neither for him individually nor for the team. RR had a bad campaign, with nine positions on the points table. Samson himself played just nine games due to a finger injury. In his absence, Riyan Parag had to become captain for a few games. Samson scored just 285 runs, and he was able to score just one half-century in the entire season. In 14 games, RR was able to win only four.
Wherever a team picks him in IPL 2026, Samson will definitely look to improve his batting game and guide them to more wins. Fans will be keenly watching for his destination and if he is able to recover from last season’s inconsistency.
