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.

After the trade became official, RR owner Manoj Badale revealed that the blockbuster move was also fuelled by Jadeja’s personal wish to “come home."

In a video uploaded on RR’s official X account, Badale claimed that Jadeja reached out to him about four weeks ago, expressing his excitement about returning to the franchise where his IPL journey started.

“Actually, Jaddu reached out to me about four weeks ago. So, I guess in the middle of October, to say that he was really excited about the potential to “come home", as he described it, where he started his IPL career and, in fact, really started his cricket career and his visibility to the whole of India," Badale said.

Jadeja was part of the Royals squad in the first two IPL editions. No wonder, reconnecting with the seasoned all-rounder nearly a decade and a half later was an emotional experience for the RR owner.

“Over the last few weeks, we’ve had quite a few exchanges and the last time I saw him, he was 21, and it’s been fascinating getting to know him, getting to know the older version of Ravindra Jadeja."

Badale also clarified that this wasn’t just a straight Samson-for-Jadeja swap. A key part of the agreement was acquiring Sam Curran’s services, with both all-rounders filling multiple strategic gaps for RR.

“I want it to be clear, it wasn’t a trade for Jadeja. It was a trade for Jadeja and Sam Curran. So, we mustn’t forget the other component," Badale remarked.

“It was the combination of the two and how the two of them fill, sort of 3 or 4 slots, that we are trying to fill as we move into the next season. So, that’s been exciting."

Ravindra 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.