Not very long ago, Ravindra Jadeja gloriously punched the air with his legs five feet above the ground, leaving the world’s biggest cricket stadium in euphoria. What followed the jump was an unforgettable image that was etched in every CSK fan’s hearts. After glancing an overpitch delivery to fine leg for a match-winning boundary, the southpaw jolted across the ground and reached the man himself, MS Dhoni. 

The legendary Mahi lifted Jadeja for a dramatic hug. Let’s be honest, we’ve never seen Captain Cool celebrate a win like that. A special win without a doubt, and it was Jadeja who brought home the cup from the clutches of defeat. 

 

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Cut to November 2025, the Gujarati stallion is found amidst trade rumors; if true, it will send him back to where it all began for him, the Rajasthan Royals. Fans are not happy at all, and the team hasn’t made an official statement yet. On top of it, the star all-rounder further stirred the pot by deactivating his Instagram handle. 

Three seasons ago, CSK saw Jadeja as the future of the side and entrusted him with the captaincy. Well, it didn’t turn out the way it was intended to. He lost 6 out of the 8 games. Moreover, the pressure even got to his head, and he began dropping catches. Eventually, Dhoni had to bail him out. 

 

Since then, the team has been attempting various ways to get the most out of the star player. For instance, we could often spot him playing at unusual spots like No.3, 4, and 5. It went on to a situation where the team looked at him to replace Dhoni for the finisher role. Clearly, it didn’t work out. The bottom line is that the Dhoni Replacement project has been on the hunt for a long time. In fact, the legendary Indian has been pushing his retirement to hand over the team in the right hands. 

This is where Sanju Samson comes into the picture. He is actually a mirror image of Dhoni. A wicket-keeper right-handed batsman, with a calm demeanour, rarely emotes on the field, and has a quick wit during interviews. Well, are these qualifications enough to take over the reins from the greatest Indian captain? Hmmm, not sure. But he did decimate CSK, winning 8 out of the last 10 games as the Royals’ captain. 

In a way, we can say, Dhoni, with his time already running out, has no better option than the Kerala star batsman. Notably, the Sanju Samson rumour didn’t emerge out of nowhere, but it was brewing for a long time. In fact, Sanju and Dhoni were on the same stage in February 2025, sharing their wit and humour while Mandira Bedi anchored the event.

Besides, Ravi Ashwin has made enough hints on his YouTube channel to solidify the rumors.  Apart from other cricket analysts’ and ex-cricketers’ opinions, Muhammad Kaif’s take really stood out. Speaking of the rumours, he said, “For Dhoni, making the team win is the biggest goal… If Jadeja has to be sacrificed for the team’s good, Dhoni will do it… The goal is to make CSK a champion. That’s why he will let go of Jadeja if it has to be done.”

Now that the rumors have reached their peak and the teams only have time till November 15 to decide their final retention list and release players. This list will either kill the rumour or fuel it further. We have to wait and witness

Anyway, with whatever we have in our hands, let’s put it on a scale and find out where things stand for CSK. 

First and foremost, Dhoni’s knees have given up. So, Sanju’s inclusion as a wicketkeeper batsman will enable Dhoni to come in only as an impact player. 

Secondly, let’s look at how Jadeja’s absence will impact the side. Catching and fielding will take a hit. This goes without saying. 

On the bowling front, he currently stands at the 10th spot for most wickets in IPL with 170 scalps, with a decent economy of 7.6 and strike rate of 23.86, which means that Jadeja will manage to take at least one wicket per match. Apart from the number game, the star left-arm bowler has the insane ability to rush through his overs. It not only keeps the over-rate healthy but also strangles the opposition that’s looking to break their shackles in a tightly knit defense. 

On the batting front, the swordsman has secured the 26th spot in the all-time IPL run scorers with 3260 runs, averaging 28 rpg with a decent strike rate of 130. While it isn’t anything special, it’s not bad for a lower-middle-order batsman. Most importantly, he can also accelerate when needed. Mind you, he smacked 37 runs off an over, bowled by the then Purple cap holder, Harshal Patel. 

There’s no doubt that Jadeja is a valuable asset and a match-winner. But can he operate as a veteran that the rest of the team can rely on? Hmm, not consistently. 

Ravidra Jadeja’s departure will surely leave a huge void in the all-rounder column. And, the reports suggest that CSK will also have to give up on Sam Curran to enable the Sanju trade. There’s a boon and a bane in it. The team can either stack two good all-rounders or fumble big time. 

 

Moving on to Sanju Samson. Up until I prepared to write this piece, I wasn’t really a fan of this trade rumour. There has always been noise about Samson’s exclusion from the national side on social media realm. And whenever he gets a chance to put on the blue jersey, he hardly converts it to anchor his spot on the side. So, I had the perception that he wasn’t very consistent with his bat in hand. 

However, his numbers on IPL are different. He stands at the 14th spot for all-time leading run-scorer with 4704 runs, averaging 31 rpg and three hundreds under his belt. Remember, he has a better average and more tons than Rohit Sharma. With Dewald Brevis, Urvil Patel, and Ayush Mhatre in the mix, Samson could play the role of a secondary anchor if Ruturaj falls short early. 

Additionally, Samson could be the perfect replacement to fill Rayudu’s void. Coincidentally, the former CSK batsman stands at the 15th spot for the all-time runs scored. So, if not for captaincy, Samson could strengthen the batting unit that took an ugly hit in the last few seasons, failing to chase down 180+ scores.

The bottom line is CSK can fancy their chances with Sanju Samson.