Former Indian player turned popular cricket analyst Aakash Chopra has named Rajasthan Royals veteran Sanju Samson as the ideal replacement for MS Dhoni’s legacy in the Chennai Super Kings setup.
He claimed that a youngster like Urvil Patel, who was cast late into the Chennai Super Kings playing 11, is not suitable to replace the legendary wicket-keeper. The CSK side has considered acquiring Sanju Samson from the Rajasthan Royals.
Samson to CSK could be a gamechanger
However, no such reports have claimed that CSK has had any word with the Rajasthan Royals management about the potential trade.
Your daily dose of cricket!
This seems evident that players like either Sanju Samson, Dhruv Jurel, or Rishabh Pant have been considered by CSK, as they need a wicket-keeper batsman to replace Dhoni.
“Sanju Samson to CSK, is that actually a possibility? Will that happen? Reports have come, but you will eagerly wait to hear what RR says.”
“A CSK official has said that they are interested and keen and that it would be great if they get him because he is a keeper-batter, and they have to look beyond MS Dhoni. So he could be a very good option,” claimed Aakash Chopra through his YouTube channel.
“In my original choices, I had thought about Dhruv Jurel as well. I had thought about Rishabh Pant too. This team needs a wicketkeeper-batter, and that wicketkeeper-batter is not Urvil Patel.”
“You need a keeper with a little more pedigree and experience, and a slightly bigger name, because if you have to carry MS Dhoni’s legacy forward, you need that kind of a player,” Aakash Chopra further added.
Aakash Chopra identifies CSK spin duo as probable swap target for Rajasthan Royals
In the same video where Chopra opened up on the probable trade of Samson, he also opined that Ravichandran Ashwin or Ravindra Jadeja might be the CSK players whom RR might target in return for their most veteran player.
“Will this trade happen? CSK have said that they are interested, but they haven’t reached the stage in the conversation where they can say who they can trade. Rajasthan may want either Ashwin or Jadeja. It is well within their rights to ask if that trade is ever going to happen,” said the former cricketer.
ALSO READ: After Sanju Samson, Dhruv Jurel gets a ridiculous offer from this IPL team
Sanju Samson’s stats in IPL for the Rajasthan Royals
Sanju Samson has been an exceptional talent in the IPL, as the batter has scored a huge 4704 runs in 177 matches, with 3 hundreds in the IPL as well.
Sanju Samson made his debut for the Rajasthan Royals in 2013 and went on to feature for the side in the first three seasons till 2015. The batter scored 206, 339, and 204 runs respectively in the three seasons and then returned to 2018 for the same IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals.
He went on to score 441 runs in 2018 on his return to the Royals setup, as he next scored 342, 375, 484, 458, and 362, and his best season came in IPL 2024, where he scored 531 runs. With several injury concerns in 2025, Samson managed to feature in only 9 games
Sanju is considered fair to replace MS Dhoni; will that deny Urvil Patel a fair chance?
Sanju Samson, cited by CSK for the wicket-keeper’s role, suggests reports, though nothing has been confirmed as of yet. Ideally, Urvil Patel, the youngster who has been known for his dynamic batting style and aggression, will be picked into the CSK side in IPL 2025.
CSK picked Urvil for an amount of INR 30 lakhs as it marked the replacement for injured Vansh Bedi. The wicket-keeper batsman was seen featuring in 3 games as he scored 68 runs at a strike rate of 212.50; however, due to MS Dhoni’s presence, that meant he was not handed the gloves.
Hence, Urvil Patel is not likely to be handed at least a fair chance if Sanju Samson is brought into the squad to replace the key wicket-keeper batsman.
