The Sanju Samson–Ravindra Jadeja swap deal between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) was completed on Saturday (November 15) morning, hours before the IPL 2026 retention deadline.
As part of the trade agreement, Samson joined CSK while the Royals received the services of Jadeja and Sam Curran.
CSK will be Samson's third franchise of his IPL career. Since making his IPL debut in 2013, the 31-year-old represented RR in all but two seasons—2016 and 2017—when he played for Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals).
After the deal became official, RR owner Manoj Badale revealed that Samson initiated the breakup, seeking a “fresh chapter" after a tough 2025 season.
According to Badale, the first conversation about a possible exit took place in Kolkata towards the end of the season.
“The first time, this year or in the past year, Sanju talked about moving on was probably in Kolkata towards the end of the season. We had a meeting after the game," Badale stated.
Rajasthan Royals endured a dismal IPL 2025 campaign, finishing at the ninth spot in the 10-team points table with only four wins from 14 matches. Samson was “emotionally drained” and wanted to start afresh in a different setup.
“He was personally emotionally drained," Badale said. “Sanju cares a huge amount about RR, and the season took a lot out of him. He felt that after giving the best part of 14 years to the franchise, he needed a new chapter to refresh the end of his IPL journey."
Letting a long-serving captain go isn’t new for RR as they had previously bid adieu to Jos Buttler, Shane Watson, Rahul Dravid, and even the late Shane Warne but Samson’s exit clearly carried extra weight.
“It’s a natural part of the evolution," Badale said. “You have to keep asking whether these decisions are right for the franchise, for the person, and for the fans."
Samson moved to CSK at his existing fee of ₹18 crore while Jadeja took a salary cut to return to his former franchise. The seasoned all-rounder’s league fee has now been revised from ₹18 crore to ₹14 crore.
On the other hand, England all-rounder Curran joined RR at his existing league fee of ₹2.4 crore.
