Retired Indian batter and former opener Aakash Chopra has given an opinion on the rumors that Sanju Samson could not be available in the Rajasthan Royals team in the IPL 2026 auction. First, Samson seemed to be intimately involved in the franchise and that he played a large role when it came to retention of the 2025. But the emergence of Vaibhav Suryavanshi as an actor, arguably, altered the equation according to Chopra.
It is reported that the relations between Samson and RR may have cooled by the 2025 season. They had heard similar rumours earlier in the year with fans noticing that Samson seemed slightly detached in the squad. His actions in the field were also hampered by all these injuries and or absence when he only played nine times.
Samson has been batting at number three in two of those matches with Suryavanshi being designated to be the opening batsman. As explained by Chopra, this switch of the batting order may be an indicator that the Kerala hitter does not hold the same influence in the team decisions as he did previously.
“Why would Sanju Samson want to leave? It’s interesting because when the last mega auction happened, they let Jos Buttler go, and I felt they let Jos Buttler go because Yashasvi had come and Sanju wanted to open, and Sanju and Rajasthan Royals were really, really thick,” Chopra said on YouTube.
Chopra further speculated that the current scenario might be influenced by the arrival of Vaibhav Suryavanshi. With two openers already settled and Dhruv Jurel also being pushed higher in the batting order, Samson could feel surplus to requirements.
“I felt there would have been a massive input from Sanju in the players they retained or released. However, now it seems it might not have been there. Vaibhav Suryavanshi has come, so two openers are already ready, and you also want to bat Dhruv Jurel up the order. So Sanju wishes to leave. If he is thinking like that, it’s possible. These are conjectures. I don’t know what’s in his and Rajasthan’s minds,” Chopra added.
Nevertheless, as much as the uncertainty has left, Samson is the all-time leading run-scorer of Rajasthan Royals and their longest-serving captain hence forming part and parcel of the team heritage.
Samson is, apparently, being wooed by two franchises, namely: Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders. According to the rules of IPL, trade of players by another player or cash transfer is permissible before the season but this is at the sole discretion of the franchises.
“The first name that comes to my mind is not CSK,” Chopra said. “KKR should be the most desperate team. KKR don’t have an Indian wicketkeeper-batter, and that just ties their hands behind their back. Secondly, what’s wrong if you get a captain? I am not denying that Ajinkya Rahane has captained well and has scored runs as well,” he added.
Chopra feels that KKR batting structure would get a boost by induction of Samson, particularly, when they need to release Venkatesh Iyer to generate nearly 24 crores. This would enable them to have flexibility within the auction and a dependable leader.
“However, Ajinkya Rahane as a batter, either he opens or else the batting order has been a bit of a problem. They have a player they can release as well. If they wish, they can release Venkatesh Iyer, free up nearly ₹24 crore, and then they can actually make a difference,” Chopra said.
RR may also recruit Riyan Parag as the preferred pick of captaincy should Samson leave the franchise since the former is the inaugural IPL winners.
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