Sanju Samson

When Sanju Samson joined the Chennai Super Kings, there were speculations of him becoming the new captain of the franchise. The 31-year-old was traded by the Rajasthan Royals (RR) to the five-time champions for INR 18 crore. Meanwhile, CSK have confirmed that Ruturaj Gaikwad will continue to lead the franchise. He has been their skipper for two seasons, but MS Dhoni had to return midway in 2025 after regular leader Gaikwad was injured.

In one of the most talked-about moves in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Samson, the star performer of Rajasthan Royals for years, joined Chennai, with the 2008 champions getting Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran in return. Samson will don the yellow jersey from the next season, while Jadeja returned to his former franchise for INR 14 crore. Curran joined RR for INR 2.4 crore, as revealed by the league.

Samson represented Rajasthan for 11 years, having joined the team in 2013. He was one of their key players for more than a decade and was retained in 2014 as a 19-year-old. After RR’s two-year suspension from the league, Samson returned in 2018 and was given the captaincy in 2021.

Under his leadership, the team made it to the final in 2022, their first mega match after a gap of 14 years, with the skipper scoring 531 runs at an average of 48.27 and a strike rate of 153.47, laced with five fifties. He was retained for INR 18 crore ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction but missed several matches due to injuries. RR couldn’t win matches and finished ninth in the standings.

Samson scored 285 runs in nine innings, with just one fifty. In 155 matches for RR, Samson amassed 4,219 runs at an average of 31.96, a strike rate of over 140, including two hundreds and 26 half-centuries. Samson was a part of the Delhi Capitals in the 2016 and 2017 seasons.

On the other hand, Jadeja competed in 186 matches for Chennai Super Kings, scoring 2,198 runs at an average of 28.54 and a strike rate of over 136. He also took 143 wickets at an average of 28.32. Overall, he has played 254 matches, the fifth most in the history of the cash-rich league.

The 27-year-old Sam Curran has played 64 matches in IPL, amassing 997 at an average of 24.92, with six fifties. He has added 59 scalps to his bowling figures.

An ardent Team India, Virat Kohli, and Arsenal Fan, Mohd Asim, has been associated with Crictoday for several years. He enjoys all the formats of the game and believes that three can coexist, considering...