Chennai Super Kings (CSK) endured a dismal IPL 2025 campaign, but South African batter Dewald Brevis’ signing was a silver lining for the franchise.

Brevis was roped in as an injury replacement for Gurjapneet Singh, who was originally bought for ₹2.2 crore. Though he joined the squad late, the Proteas youngster left a lasting impression on everyone by amassing 225 runs in just 6 matches at a strike rate of around 180.

Recently, former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin claimed that CSK may have paid 'extra' to fetch Brevis, beating out interest from several other IPL teams.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ashwin claimed that the five-time champions went beyond the base price to secure Brevis’ services. Notably, Brevis went unsold at the mega auction last November with his base price being at ₹75 lakh.

After Ashwin's comments took the internet by storm, CSK issued an official statement in response.

“Chennai Super Kings categorically clarifies that all actions taken by the franchise during the signing process of Dewald Brevis as a Replacement Player during the TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 were in complete compliance with the rules and regulations of the IPL,” the statement read.

As per the IPL rules, the fee paid for a replacement player cannot exceed the amount paid for the injured player being replaced. Since Gurjapneet Singh was signed for ₹2.2 crore, any payment beyond that amount to Brevis would violate the laws.

Ashwin had suggested that CSK paid Dewald Brevis under the table to acquire his services midway through the IPL 2025 season.

“Let me tell you something about Brevis. He had a great stint with CSK in the last IPL. In fact, a few teams were talking to him. Some backed out because of the price. When you're signing a player as a replacement, you're supposed to sign him at the base price. But agents get involved, and the player might say, ‘If you give me X amount extra, I'll join.'”

“That happens because the player knows that if he's released next season, he might go for big money. So his thought process was — ‘Pay me well now, or I'll get more next year.' CSK agreed to the terms, and that's how he joined. In the second half of the season, CSK's combination was strong. They'll now head into the IPL 2026 mini-auction with ₹30 crore in their purse,” Ashwin explained.