The latest post by the Rajasthan Royals (RR) on X has fueled speculation about their long-term captain Sanju Samson parting ways with the franchise for the next season. The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 mega auction is expected to witness huge changes taking place in the squads of all franchises.
Despite Samson being the 5th highest run scorer in the previous season, he continues to face severe setbacks at the international stages. The latest post raises questions about his future in the franchise leagues as well.
Meanwhile, there are rumors that Sanju Samson might be traded to Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Also, it is predicted that the Rajasthan Royals might use the ‘3+1’ retention rule to keep their top performers in the squad.
Rajasthan Royals’ New Post on Social Media for Sanju Samson
On August 23 (Thursday), the Rajasthan Royals posted a 28-second video on its official page on X and Instagram handle, that honors Sanju Samson’s contribution to the team. Few fans and experts believed that the video might be a way of communicating a farewell to Samson, indicating that the team is gradually getting ready to move forward without their skipper before the 2025 auction.
The video showed a few scenes of Sanju Samson interacting with the players of Rajasthan Royals and the head coach of the team Kumar Sangakkara.
Especially, the gossip was spread to a peak level when the franchise posted it with a unique caption ‘Major Missing’ with emojis expressing their disappointment.
Disappointments in Sanju Samson’s Cricketing Career
Sanju Samson’s career has been marked with full of highs and lows moments. Although, he has consistently contributed his best for Rajasthan Royals, his journey to secure a spot in the Indian national cricket team has been extremely challenging.
Even after scoring a magnificent century, that includes a 114-ball-108-run knock (including 6 fours and 3 sixes) against South Africa in his last ODI outing, he was excluded from the 50-overs squad for the recently concluded Sri Lankan tour.
Moreover, Samson hasn’t got a deserving chance to play a single match in the T20 World Cup 2024, despite being a part of the 15-member squad. Mainly, the fans and experts were left questioning the selectors’ decision to exclude him for a crucial series.
Is Sanju Samson being traded to the Chennai Super Kings?
In recent times, a few reports suggest that Sanju Samson might be traded to Chennai Super Kings, but the official confirmation is yet to be received. However, the strong bond between Rajasthan Royals and Sanju Samson makes it clear that the Kerela cricketer has fewer chances to leave the team.
At the same time, there are rumors that RR could accept the trade deal by asking for CSK’s all-rounder Shivam Dube in return for the forthcoming edition. While few others recommend that RR isn’t interested in a lucrative cash exchange with CSK.
Furthermore, Samson was the 2nd highest run scorer for his team after Riyan Parag on the list. In 15 matches, he scored 531 runs, which includes five 50-plus scores at an average of 48.27. Notably, it was the first time, Sanju Samson crossed the 500-run mark in a single season of his IPL career, thereby surpassing his previous highest record of 484 runs in IPL 2021.
The 29-year-old batter-wicketkeeper has proved his capabilities as a leader by guiding RR to the IPL 2022 finals and playoffs in 2024, since his appointment as a captain in 2021.
Most importantly, Rajasthan Royals wouldn’t afford to take such risky steps after observing the failure of Mumbai Indians in the previous season, when they swapped Rohit Sharma with Hardik Pandya for the captaincy deal.
Will Rajasthan Royals Retain Sanju Samson using the 3+1 Retention Rule?
Possibly, Rajasthan Royals might retain Sanju Samson using the 3+1 retention rule, which states that a franchise is allowed with three direct retentions along with the Right to Match (RTM) for an extra player. According to this rule, the teams can retain two Indian players, whereas the option to save a maximum of two overseas players remains unrestricted during the auction. As a result, there are chances that RR might retain Sanju Samson along with Yashasvi Jaiswal and other two foreign players namely Jos Buttler and Trent Boult.
Conclusion:
As the IPL 2025 mega auction approaches within a few months, there are unanswered questions if Sanju Samson will continue his stint with Rajasthan Royals or search for a new chapter in his career.
Based on the existing rules, each team would be allowed to have only four retentions. However, if a new rule is introduced, then the franchise can retain upto six players, which gives Rajasthan Royals an ideal opportunity to retain Sanju Samson as well as other key players in the squad. But, the IPL Governing Council hasn’t provided any official confirmation regarding the player retention rule.
It is important to know that the news related to the trade and information of players leaving the side hasn’t been formally confirmed by the franchises and is pure speculation.
At present, fans are eagerly waiting for an official update as Samson strives to earn his respect as India’s most talented and valuable cricketer in the forthcoming days of his cricketing career.