Khaleel Ahmed (L) & Nathan Ellis in CSK (Source: AFP Photos)
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) let go of Nathan Ellis and Khaleel Ahmed, two of their primary wicket-taking options, ahead of IPL 2027. In return, they took Liam Livingstone and Jack Edwards from Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), as the IPL governing council confirmed a blockbuster four-player trade on Thursday (November 5).
Livingstone, who was with SRH at a whopping price of INR 13 crore, will play for CSK at INR 6 crore. Edwards, on the other hand, will have his existing IPL salary of INR 3 crore.
Ellis and Khaleel, meanwhile, will have their existing IPL salaries of INR 2 crore and INR 4.8 crore respectively.
SRH Strike Gold As CSK Agree To Mega 4-Player IPL Trade
At least to naked eyes, it seems like SRH have been a real winner with this deal. While Khaleel has been exceptional with the new ball in hand, Ellis, who could only play one match in IPL 2026 due to injuries, has been highly impactful during the death overs.
On the other hand, neither Edwards nor Livingstone were SRH’s out-and-out regular in IPL. Thus, it is safe to say that SRH are the real winners here, although things can change under the new leadership of Zaheer Khan.
Overall, Khaleel has an experience of playing 76 IPL matches for three franchises. He was brilliant for CSK during IPL 2025, having taken 15 wickets in 14 matches.
Ellis, meanwhile, had his best IPL season in 2023, for Punjab Kings. There, he took 13 wickets in 10 matches with an economy rate of 8.92.
SRH Continue To Strengthen Bowling Attack For IPL 2027
Few days ago, SRH brought back T Natarajan from Delhi Capitals for IPL 2027. They already have the likes of Praful Hinge, Sakib Hussain, David Payne, Gerald Coetzee, Dilshan Madushanka, Eshan Malinga, Jaydev Unadkat, Shivam Mavi, Harshal Patel along with Pat Cummins as an out-and-out fast bowling options.
Nitish Kumar Reddy is there as well. Hence, there is a big chance that Cummins might skip IPL 2027, keeping the Ashes in mind.
Nonetheless, they still look very strong on paper, and Ishan Kishan too did a decent job as a stand-in captain in IPL 2026 when Cummins was not around.
