 "Sanju Samson leaves Rajasthan Royals as their leading run-scorer with more than 4,000 runs for the franchise across 11 IPL seasons. AP")
Sanju Samson’s high-profile trade to Chennai Super Kings has been the single biggest talking point this month as far as the Indian Premier League is concerned, with the Rajasthan Royals captain and wicketkeeper finally joining the ‘Yellow Army’ on Saturday after weeks of speculation.
The blockbuster trade was confirmed just hours before the IPL 2026 retention deadline , which had been set for 5 pm IST on Saturday, with CSK offering veteran Indian all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and English all-rounder Sam Curran in exchange.
The trade – the biggest in the IPL since Gujarat Titans captain Hardik Pandya joined Mumbai Indians two years ago – marked the end of Samson’s long journey with 2008 champions Royals. The Kerala wicketkeeper-batter, after all, has been with the franchise since making his IPL debut in 2013 – barring a couple of seasons with Delhi Capitals at a time when RR had been handed a two-year suspension along with CSK on corruption charges.
Despite his long association with the franchise, Samson did not appear to be on good terms with the Royals management, especially head coach Rahul Dravid who had stepped down from the role earlier this year after managing the side for a solitary season in his second spell with the franchise.
His breakdown in relations with Dravid and the rest of the management coincided with the Royals finishing ninth in the 10-team table, avoiding the wooden spoon thanks to a Net Run Rate that was slightly better than that of his current team CSK.
Royals owner opens up on Samson’s departure to CSK
In a video shared by the Royals on their YouTube channel, franchise owner Manoj Badale revealed that Samson had been feeling emotionally drained and had expressed his desire to leave the franchise after their narrow loss in their away clash against Kolkata Knight Riders last season.
“The first time this year—or in the past year—that Sanju talked about moving on was probably in Kolkata towards the end of the season. We had a meeting after the game. He’s a very honest guy. He was personally and emotionally drained. He cares a huge amount about RR, and I think having our worst season in 18 years took a lot out of him. Having given the best part of 14 years, with a short break, to RR, he felt he needed a new chapter to refresh the end of his IPL journey,” Badale said in the video.
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View AllBadale also revealed that Samson’s appointment as captain in 2021 was a “high-risk move”, but the 31-year-old ultimately “put everything into the role”. Under Samson, RR had reached the final of 15th season in 2022 – the first team they had reached that stage since the inaugural season in 2008 – before losing to IPL debutants Gujarat Titans in the final.
“When Sanju made the request, it felt different for us because he’s a very authentic man; if he says something, he generally means it. He has been an extraordinary servant of the franchise for 14 years. It’s not just the batting or the sixes the fans see—it’s everything else he has put in.
“When we made the decision to make him captain, that was a high-risk move. He was a young and inexperienced captain, but he put everything into that role. There has been a lot of emotion from our fans and from the team that has grown up under Sanju. I feel emotional about it myself,” he added.
Samson had scored 4,027 runs across 11 seasons with RR which included 531 runs in 2024 – the most he has ever amassed in a single IPL season. His arrival at CSK comes as a major boost for a franchise that has failed to reach the IPL playoffs since winning their fifth title two years ago, and are in desperate need of firepower at the top of their order.