IPL Trade Verdict | Samson to CSK and Jadeja-Curran to RR: who wins, who loses, and potential lineups
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Buckle up nerds, it is that time of the year again. If you were tired of getting your trading and transfers fix from the NBA, NFL, MLB, and club football, the IPL has finally come to the rescue by producing a sensational blockbuster player swap of its own worth hours of analysis -- so have at it.
A quick reminder before we begin: IPL 2025 was an absolute whirlwind. Royal Challengers Bengaluru lifted their maiden trophy after an 18-year wait, the same amount of time Chennai Super Kings went without a bottom-placed finish in the tournament until they managed just four wins in 14 games last season. Punjab Kings went from being perpetual punching bags to a dominant force that was one victory away from getting their name on the silverware. Perhaps you could see the writing on the wall for an unprecedented season with the action that preceded it. Three players became the first to be retained for over INR 20 crores -- Heinrich Klaasen (23), Nicholas Pooran (21), and Virat Kohli (21). Three more became the first Indians to breach the INR 20 crore mark in an auction -- Rishabh Pant (27), Shreyas Iyer (26.75), and Venkatesh Iyer (23.75).
If you thought the latter of those was when bizarreness in the IPL peaked, the latest blockbuster trade might have left you dizzy, and for good reason. After months of rumours, sepculations, and fan wars, the news of by far the biggest player trade in tournament history is official: Sanju Samson is going to wear yellow come IPL 2026, trading the Royal Pink with Ravindra Jadeja who returns to the pantheon where he first announced himself on the big stage. The veteran will be joined at his new home by fellow all-rounder Sam Curran, as the 27-year-old continues to develop lucrative skills tailormade for T20 extravagance. For context, the most high value player swap preceding this one was when Rajasthan Royals and Lucknow Super Giants swapped Devdutt Padikkal and Avesh Khan, their current IPL appearance tallies total to a neat 150; Jadeja alone has played over 250 games, while the three players in the trade have a combined 495 IPL games under their belt.
That being said, it is not the first time a trade can prove pivotal to a franchise's fortunes. Robin Uthappa's move to CSK from RR -- ironically the only other time the Whistle Podu clan has indulged in a trade -- played an integral role in the franchise lifting their fourth IPL title. Hardik Pandya led Gujarat Titans to top-of-the-table finishes in their first two seasons as skipper, culminating in a trophy and a runners-up medal. Since his departure to Mumbai Indians, GT have finished eighth and third respectively without any summit clash appearances to show for it. And now that the dust has settled on the Sanju-Jadeja swap, the same question arises -- how will this deal impact last season's two worst teams for the next year and beyond?
Devon Conway was likely the first name on Chennai Super Kings' release list after a poor outing in 2025 considering a hefty price tag of INR 6.25 crores. However, a decision on Rachin Ravindra would have been trickier since he has age on his side. One of CSK's major drawbacks last season was their batting up-top and while Ayush Mhatre emerged as a promising alternative alongside skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad, a slot in the top three remained up for grabs. With Sanju Samson now inarguably set to fill that role, the Kiwi might just prove excess to requirements and CSK could do with the four extra crores they could earn as a result.
Rajasthan Royals adopted a peculiarly unusual strategy in the mega-auction for last year when they went big on two foreign spinners Wanindu Hasaranga (5.25cr) and Maheesh Theekshana (4.4cr). The move backfired heavily as the duo scalped 11 wickets each at a combined average of 35.5 and economy of 9.41, making Rajasthan the second-worst faring spin unit behind just Sunrisers Hyderabad. However, the installation of Kumar Sangakkara as head coach and more importantly, the lack of frontline Indian spin options in the market meant retention of both was likely. Adding Jadeja to the mix changes all that -- not only is he one of the most successful tweakers in IPL history, but also a handy middle-order bat and in the same defensive mould as Theekshana with enough ability and experience to deliver overs in the powerplay.
Perhaps Shimron Hetmyer was already on the release list regardless of the trade, but the latest move more or less seems to seal his fate. The Windies power-hitter is one of the most destructive death batters in world cricket but his X-factor comes from being a left-hander, a role perhaps only David Miller can fulfill at the global level as of present. While neither Jadeja nor Curran have the same six-hitting ability to boast of, both southpaws have played enough as finishers in their career to slot into that role, and it would take them real stinkers to not outdo what the Caribbean batter has managed in his last two years at the franchise.
The instructions given to Tushar Deshpande by the RR management lalst year would have been simple: swing the new ball and deliver us powerplay wickets. The pacer's response? Three scalps in seven outings at an economy exceeding 11. Like Hetmyer, that would likely have been enough to endure a release, and the introduction of Curran might be the final nail in the coffin. Not only can the Englishman swing the new ball prodigouly like his Indian counterpart, but also deliver crucial overs in the death and use his variations on unfriendly surfaces to good effect unlike Deshpande. In Yudhvir Singh and Akash Madhwal, Rajasthan already have enough Indian seam back-up alongside Sandeep Sharma. Similarly, Fazalhaq Farooqi (2cr) and Kwena Maphaka (1.5cr) might also head for the exit doors if Rajasthan wish to create further room in their budget given the squad already has two X-factor quicks in Jofra Archer and Nandre Burger.
No team averaged less than Chennai Super King's seven sixes a game last year. The only team they managed to outhit was Kolkata Knight Riders by a count of two, despite them enduring two practically complete washouts. Only five players had their count in the double digits, of which Ravindra Jadeja was one with 10 maximums. That is one of many metrics to highlight just how fragile Chennai's batting was last year, both up-top and in the middle. Now, with one mainstay and one potential fix for the latter issue gone, the pit has only deepened. In Jamie Overton they do have a player built for the role, but neither is he a marquee player on the international stage nor dos he have a proven IPL track-record to lay concrete claim on the all-important overseas slot. Who plays at six and seven remains a guess as good as any, but what is beyond doubt at this stage is Cameron Green being a part of the auction pool. The all-rounder could be in range with a likely purse of over INR 20 crores and fit like a glove for the side, but there's just one problem -- the same holds true for essentially the other nine teams too. The other option is they get their spare overs out of Dube who has stepped up for India with the ball in recent times, but you could see that ending disastrously from a continent away.
Who bowls spin and who all-rounds?
Chennai bet big on spin last year, acquiring Ravichandran Ashwin for a mind-boggling 9.75 crores in what turned out to be literally his twilight year in the IPL. Now with Jadeja also gone, Chennai find themselves in the difficult spot of not only having to find a middle-order batter but also one that doubles down as a spin bowler given the veteran was two players in one as far as CSK were concerned. Even if likes of Glenn Maxwell and Liam Livingstone amongst others are perhaps capable enough to be a second spinner, and that's a big IF, it would push Overton out of the lineup (no overseas slots available) and leave them an all-rounder short still. Maybe a Tanush Kotian can emerge as the solution, but good luck trying to win an IPL with him at seven/eight.
1 Sanju Samson 2 Ruturaj Gaikwad 3 Ayush Mhatre 4 Dewald Brevis* 5 Shivam Dube 6 TBD 7 Jamie Overton* 8 MS Dhoni (wk) 9 Noor Ahmad* 10 Nathan Ellis/ Matheesha Pathirana* 11 Mukesh Chowdhary 12 Khaleel Ahmed
As already discussed earlier in this write-up, the two biggest issues for Rajasthan last year were their ability to finish matches and take wickets in the middle-overs. Both Curran and Jadeja are two-way solutions to those problems. Add to that the rising reputation of Dhruv Jurel who is bound to come good with more experience considering there is no shortage of ability. All it will take is a marginal improvement from Shubham Dubey and that middle-order begins to look pretty formidable. However, the strategy relies on Vaibhav Suryavanshi continuing on the same trajectory that he showcased last year. Lest we forget, he is still 15 years old, and the Second Season Syndrome is no fiction. Rajasthan could do with a back-up in case things go awry for the prodigy considering none of their other backups seem to fit the bill either. Fortunately for them, a battery of Indian quicks allows them to potentially acquire a Jamie Smith or Ben Duckett and field Jofra Archer as their lone foreign seamer.
1 Yashasvi Jaiswal 2 Vaibhav Suryavanshi 3 Riyan Parah 4 Nitish Rana 5 Ravindra Jadeja 6 Dhruv Jurel 7 Sam Curran* 8 Shubham Dubey 9 Wanindu Hasaranga* 10 Jofra Archer* 11 Nandre Burger* 12 Sandeep Sharma
From where I stand, a clear winner of the trade at the moment seems to be Rajasthan Royals simply because it leaves them less to do at the mini-auction which can turn out to be a lottery. Rajasthan went with a clear strategy of stacking their batting order with Indians, and the addition of Jadeja only enhances the blueprint. The other hallmark of their planning was two marquee foreign spinners but in Riyan Parag they always had a supplement, and Jadeja now fills that void too. Chennai, on the other hand, went the all-rounder route and have now not only scrapped up the masterplan by giving away two world class two-way players, but also added reinforcements in a department where they had already reinforced with Ayush Mhatre while Ruturaj Gaikwad was also set to return having only playeed five games last year.
Admittedly, the two teams are not at level pegging, given Chennai's Sanju acquisition is more of a long-term move in the face of MS Dhoni's imminent retirement and lack of a strong leadership to follow, while Jadeja and Curran are short-term fixes to some glaring issues in the Rajasthan unit. However, the IPL runs in three-year cycles, and a lack of clarity in mega auction rules leaves everything to play for in one way or another. Kolkata thought they were building a dynasty, only to see their skipper lead Punjab Kings to the final while they struggled to stay afloat. Ishan Kishan was guaranteed to be a long-term wicket-keeper for Mumbai Indians, but finds himself flailing at Sunrisers Hyderabad. Lucknow Super Giants made KL Rahul the face of their franchise, and then defaced him enough to send him scuttling into the auction pool. And the less we talk about Hardik Pandya, the better.
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