Sanju Samson asks to be released by RR ahead of IPL 2026 auction? He may then join...
New Delhi: There are reports of having problems between Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson and the team management. The report claims that Sanju Samson has put two conditions in front of the team management. Sanju has requested the management for a trade or release before IPL 2026. Sanju's family has even said that Samson is no longer in the mood to captain Rajasthan Royals. What is happening between Sanju Samson and RR management?
According to a Cricbuzz report, nothing is going right between Sanju Samson and the Rajasthan Royals team management. The report cites conversations with fellow team players that Sanju Samson wants to leave the team. What is the reason behind this sudden change in Samson's mindset?
Well, all this is speculation right now. However, it is believed that the Kerala cricketer is not happy with his batting order. Samson likes to open in T20, but after Vaibhav Suryavanshi's brilliant performance in IPL 2025, he was sent to number three. He was able to play only 9 matches in total. What does Sanju Samson want?
Samson is probably upset with this, who is also fighting for an opening spot in India's T20 team. Therefore, batting at number three for Rajasthan will end his chances of making it to the national team and that is why he wants a fresh start. Which franchise is interested in Sanju Samson?
Chennai Super Kiogs is one such franchise that wants to trade Samson to add him to their squad. However, the five-time champions do not have enough money left to bring in the cricketer. To sign him, Chennai Super Kings will have to give up one of their marquee players or release players who were benched last season or who failed to impress.
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India.com
37 minutes ago
- India.com
'Will remove you from the team...', Sanju Samson recalls Team India head coach's words over...
Sanju Samson. (PIC - X) Wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson credited India head coach Gautam Gambhir for backing him to succeed in T20Is, and revealed him saying that he would only be dropped from the team if he registered 21 ducks. With Gambhir taking charge as India's head coach after the T20 World Cup win and Suryakumar Yadav appointed as the captain, Samson was given the opportunity to open the batting and has formed a formidable opening pair with left-handed batter Abhishek Sharma. 'So, suddenly, the change happened after the T20 World Cup. So Gautam bhai came in, and Surya came in as the captain. I was playing a Duleep Trophy game in Andhra. Surya was playing for the other team.' 'He told me, 'There is a good opportunity coming up for you. We have seven games lined up, and I am going to give you all seven games as an opener'. The words coming out from the captain's mouth itself actually felt, Oh wow, great,' said Samson in a video on former off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin's YouTube channel on Saturday. Further throwing light on what Gambhir said to him, Samson said, 'I played two games in Sri Lanka but was unable to score runs. I was a bit down in the dressing room, and Gautam bhai came up to me and asked what had happened.' 'I said, 'After a long time, I got a chance, but I failed to capitalise'. He said, 'So what? I'll drop you if you register 21 ducks'. That's the word that he used. That kind of confidence from the captain and the coach has definitely raised my confidence. That really helped me to go out there and perform,' he added. So far, Samson has featured in 42 T20Is for India, scoring 861 runs at an average of 25.32 and a strike rate of 152.38. He has registered three centuries and two fifties in the format, with his maiden hundred coming against Bangladesh in Hyderabad last year, followed by two more centuries against South Africa. He will be in contention for the Indian team selection for the Asia Cup in the UAE from September 9-28. Samson admitted that being in and out of the team since his T20I debut in 2015 had left him frustrated, but things changed for the better for him after the arrival of Gambhir and Suryakumar. 'I know this thing, being on and off from the team and all those things were happening for a very long period of time, so honestly, I feel like it was not easy, and I think it was definitely not easy to have those kinds of feelings.' 'Like, I almost completed eight to nine years of my international career, but I only played 15 games or something. I always tried to keep myself in a very positive frame of mind. I always kept on telling myself, 'Okay, it will happen, but different people have different journeys. Yours is a different journey',' he concluded.
NDTV
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Rashid Khan Opens Up On Rehab Mistakes, How A Break Helped Him Rediscover His Best Following Back Surgery
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"And when I came on Tuesday, I felt so good, in a good rhythm, and the ball was coming nicely out of my hand, and [my] body was allowing me to go through. So these things matter a lot - sometimes you do not think about that a lot; you just try your best to push yourself. But I feel to be out of the game for some time and focus on my fitness - and also [focus] mentally and physically - that played a huge role," he added. On a sluggish Lord's pitch, Rashid bowled at speeds varying between 94-98 kph and looked in total control. "On Tuesday, I was bowling at 94-98 kph - that is my pace, and the speeds I am known to bowl at. I feel I was missing that before because my body was not allowing me to go through my action with that full energy. Last night, against Spirit, when I came to bowl, I was getting that good feeling, and I was touching that speed with which I could put the batsman in trouble, and also not allow him much time to read from the surface," he added. After a few months of his back surgery, despite a warning to pay attention to his rehab, Rashid started playing competitive cricket from March 2024 onwards against Ireland, mostly T20Is, though. He was also a part of Afghanistan's historic run to the semifinals in the T20 World Cup 2024. Soon after that, he faced niggles in his back and hamstrings, causing him to miss the Big Bash League (BBL) and Pakistan Super League (PSL). In January 2025, he played some Test cricket, playing the second Zimbabwe Test at Bulawayo, bowling a combined 55 overs and picking up 11 wickets. But the toll of these marathon spells was felt during the Champions Trophy and the IPL. In the CT, he could pick just one wicket in three matches and leaked runs at an economy rate of 6.25. "When I came back to cricket after surgery, I was told not to rush back in the longer formats [Tests and ODIs] that quickly as that was not going to help me," Rashid said. "About eight to nine months after I had started to play post-surgery, I bowled 65 [55] overs in the Bulawayo Test. That really pushed my back a little bit, and I felt it at that time. I should not have been in whites." "In T20s, it is fine - you can manage yourself - but for the longer formats, I was advised that you should be away from that format for some time. That is the kind of mistake I have made. But the team needed that. At that time, we had lost a few games in Test cricket, but that is something where I rushed myself a little bit, and I did not give myself time, and I felt it later on. Yes, I think I have done a mistake where my body was not allowing me that and I am facing a problem. The thing i,s the stiffness in your back does not allow you to go with full rhythm," he added. During the IPL, the spin wizard admitted trying too many things and bowling too many overs in the training sessions. "I was trying my best to get back on track and deliver the best for the team, and do what I am famous for, what I am known for. But sometimes, you are trying your best, you are pushing yourself too much, [and] it doesn't help. You just need to try to be relaxed and cool down, and let the things [be] - it will be fine. You just need to not put too much of pressure on yourself. I was going to the nets every day, sometimes bowling 15-16 overs at one go," he added. Rashid felt that he was "letting everyone down" and even consulted GT's coaching staff regarding his bowling, as he felt good bowling in the nets. Now, looking back, spinner admits the needs to "calm down" and accept one could have "bad days or years". "Sometimes you just need to calm down. You do have bad days, [and] you have bad years, and you have to accept that; it's not like you are going to be on top all the time. These things just teach you so many good things. And that is something which I should have taken - like yes, it is fine. I shouldn't be pushing myself too much. I am positive that I am working hard, but it is just a matter of time it will come," he said. Rashid was also aware given the status and intensity IPL had, people were bound to question if he was past his prime. "Everyone then talk about like, 'Okay, what happened? Is he done?' Is it this, [or] that? But for me, I was just missing my length," he said. When he entered the IPL in 2017, Rashid bowled an economy of just six runs per over until 2022. By the next year, batters, especially right-handers, had a freer, attacking approach against him, with his economy rate gradually increasing to 8.57 (2023), 8.84 (2024) and 9.69 (2025) against the right-handers, as compared to just 5.95 in the 2017 season, which marked his debut. A few seasons ago, Rashid's balls-per-six ratio was 43, but by 2025, it was 10. Rashid was aware of these numbers, but didn't feel too concerned. "Before, when I was bowling 24 balls (four overs per T20 innings), I was missing pitching them on length for like four or five balls. But then the number went up to eight or nine balls. And in those eight to nine balls, they are scoring those extra couple of sixes and couple of big boundaries. I just needed to decrease that. Nothing else. It is not like of the 24 balls, I was bowling every ball badly, [or] I was bowling wides and full tosses. I knew it is going to be fine," he added. Rashid pulled out of the Major Cricket League (MLC), where he represents MI New York, in June after a chat with coaches made him extent of stress he was putting his body under and unable to go with the "full flow". During his time away from the game, he did a lot of strength training, especially for his lower back and did some spot bowling two to three times a week, along with some batting. The gym work gained more focus. The spinner, who got married last October, also got to spend more time with the family, which left him feeling relaxed. "After IPL finished, for three weeks, I did not touch the ball. I spent most of my time with my family, [and] my nephews - going around with them, [and] had fun - just to take all those memories and stuff and bad days out of my mind, and then restart with the cricket. That is what I did just to be refreshed, and then got back on track and got back bowling in the right spot," he added. The break seems to have impacted Rashid positively, as before coming back to The Hundred, he played four matches for Speen Ghar Tigers, in Afghanistan's T20 tournament, picking up 4/19 in the last match. Now, Rashid will be hoping to carry the momentum forward as Invincibles aim to make it a hat-trick of titles.
News18
3 hours ago
- News18
Srikkanth names the right replacement for MS Dhoni in CSK
Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], August 9 (ANI): Former Indian cricketer Kris Srikkanth said on Saturday that wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson, currently representing Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), is the 'right replacement" for legendary multi-time IPL winning skipper MS Dhoni in the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) set-up, pointing out to his popularity in the state. Srikkanth was speaking on his Youtube Channel. His comments amid media reports that Samson, who leads the Pink franchise, could switch to CSK and has asked RR to release him ahead of the next IPL season, reportedly due to a drift between him and head coach Rahul Dravid. Speaking about Samson on his channel, Srikkanth said, 'To tell you the truth, Sanju is a brilliant player and he is very popular in Chennai. He has got a good brand image in Chennai. As I said, I will be the first one to pick him for Chennai if he is willing to leave and comes this side."'He is the right replacement for MS Dhoni. Dhoni can maximum play this season, maybe not the year after and then you can have a smooth transition. But I feel if Ruturaj Gaikwad has been given the captaincy, he should be continued with," he added. Dhoni, aged 44, is in the twilight of his IPL career, having retired from international cricket back in 2019. During the last season, he led the side after Gaikwad was ruled out due to injury. His captaincy could not change the team's fortunes as they finished at the bottom with just four wins. Batting as a finisher, Dhoni scored 196 runs in 13 innings, with an average of 24.50, a strike rate of over 135, with a best score of 30*. Continuing, Srikkanth said that as per reports, there seems to be rift between Samson and Dravid. 'But I am not fully aware. Look at it from a franchise point of view. They have paid him a certain amount and retained him. They have formed the team around him. All of a sudden, if you release him, what happens to the team balance? They have not won the IPL since 2008. They have reached the final after that (in 2022). I do not think I would let go of Sanju Samson. If they want to promote Riyan Parag as captain, that is their choice. I would still play Samson as a batter. He has been paid Rs 18 crore," Srikkanth concluded. Having played for Delhi Capitals from 2016-17, Samson has been a part of the RR set-up for the majority of his IPL career since his debut in 2013, scoring 4,027 runs at an average of 31.71, with two centuries and 23 fifties. Last year, in an injury-ridden season, he scored 285 runs in nine matches at an average of 35.63, with a fifty to his name. Riyan captained in his absence. (ANI)
