The Indian Premier League (IPL) governing council issued a media release on Saturday (November 15), confirming the high-profile trade deal between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Rajasthan Royals (RR).

As part of the deal, Sanju Samson completed his much-talked-about switch to CSK from RR, with Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran going the other way.

Shortly after the trade announcement, CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan broke his silence on the franchise's thought process behind letting go of Jadeja, who is among the most experienced players in the league.

Jadeja was associated with CSK since 2012, except for two seasons in 2017 and 2018, when the franchise was banned.

“This decision has been taken by the team management, and it is a very tough decision, leaving out Jaddu, who has been responsible for the success of CSK over the years. It was probably one of the toughest decisions the CSK had to take as team management had to take. Considering the transition of the CSK at this point in time, the team management took the toughest decision,” said Viswanathan in a video posted on the official social media handles of CSK.

“It is a must that we should consult the players concerned, and it was after mutual agreement that we undertook this,” he added.

Viswanathan also revealed that during his chat with Jadeja, the seasoned all-rounder acknowledged that he's at the fag end of his career and he can take a break with the five-time champions and move somewhere else.

“See when I spoke to Jadeja, he was also very clear that if there is an opportunity for him because he also felt that he is in the far end of his career in white ball. So he also felt that he can have a break,” said Viswanathan.

The CSK official was candid enough to admit that he's aware of the fans’ emotions but the decision had to be taken considering the team composition.

“We have certain players who are at the far end of their career and it is very important for CSK to build a team in the next couple of years and since this is a mini auction, we don't have the opportunity to get the best of the Indian batsmen,” Viswanathan remarked.

“See, emotionally the fans will be very very upset because they have already got a lot of messages from the fans. But taking into account the current status of the team composition, the think tank of the CSK cricket management felt the need for change and I am sure that in the years to come the CSK will be maintaining the same kind of consistency and also perform well,” he concluded.

Jadeja was retained by CSK for INR 18 crore ahead of the IPL 2025 season. However, his league fee has been revised to INR 14 crore as part of the trade agreement.