‘MS Dhoni might leave in the middle’ – Kaif reasons CSK-RR trade for Sanju Samson & Ravindra Jadeja

Sanju Samson will replace MS Dhoni. That’s the crux of the trade between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Rajasthan Royals (RR). It’s expected that Dhoni might be playing his last Indian Premier League (IPL) season in 2026, and post that, Samson will take over his duties as CSK’s wicketkeeper.

Sanju Samson to captain CSK in IPL 2026?

But is that all? Mohammed Kaif doesn’t think so. The former Indian batter reckons that CSK aren’t just looking at Samson as their next star wicketkeeper who’ll replace Dhoni. Kaif thinks the reason why Ravindra Jadeja might be sent over to RR is that CSK might name Samson as the franchise’s captain. And not after the IPL 2026 season, but maybe midway.

‘Hopefully, my last T20 will be in Chennai.’ Dhoni had said this in 2021 but has reiterated the same in the last few years. At 44, he is closer to his IPL retirement than he ever was before. Kaif thinks there is a possibility that Dhoni might retire midway through the IPL 2026 season, and then Samson will replace Ruturaj Gaikwad to take over as CSK captain.

“The two players started playing IPL in 2008. Ever since he went to CSK, he hasn’t left it. If the trade is successful, this is Dhoni’s last year. There is also a chance that Dhoni might leave in the middle. If Sanju comes and starts to play, he gets comfortable with the management and Dhoni. In that case, Dhoni might ask Sanju to take over. We left Jadeja, our match-winner over the years, but we need a future captain,” Kaif said on his YouTube channel.

Why Jadeja is being traded to RR

The former batter highlighted that in normal circumstances, CSK wouldn’t have let Jadeja go. But the all-rounder isn’t young either. At this point, the 5-time IPL champions are thinking about the next era, and Jadeja won’t last for long. Therefore, they have to trade Jadeja to RR and procure a future captain like Samson.

“They previously made Jadeja the captain. He couldn’t manage things. He didn’t like the leadership. In the middle, he said that he can’t do it. Not all players can do captaincy in the IPL. In the long-term plan, Dhoni wants to sacrifice Jadeja to bring in a player who can take over leadership after the Dhoni era,” he added.

The post ‘MS Dhoni might leave in the middle’ – Kaif reasons CSK-RR trade for Sanju Samson & Ravindra Jadeja appeared first on Inside Sport India.