RCB Legend Discards Sanju Samson As CSK Captain For IPL 2026

RCB great discards Samson as CSK skipper [Source: AFP]

The biggest highlight of the IPL 2026 trade window was Sanju Samson, the Rajasthan Royals captain, joining CSK in a blockbuster deal with Ravindra Jadeja, and Sam Curran going the other way. CSK played a masterstroke as Samson is in the prime of his career, and recently, he played well in the T20 World Cup.

After 11 seasons with the Royals, and almost leading them to glory in 2022, Samson decided to try out a new chapter as he joined the five-time IPL champions ahead of the upcoming season. Many experts believed that CSK could be tempted to replace Ruturaj Gaikwad with Samson as the new skipper, but that is not what RCB legend AB De Villiers has on his mind.

RCB legend backs Gaikwad to lead CSK over Samson

According to the RCB and IPL legend, De Villiers feels that CSK should continue to back Gaikwad as the captain, as the team has groomed him to become MS Dhoni’s successor in 2024.

“I obviously feel they have got the right captain, and I don’t think they are in that mindset of possibly getting Sanju in as captain, and I think they have warmed up to Ruturaj over the last few years. Stick with the one guy; don’t even entertain any of the media or the press coming out saying, ‘Is Sanju going to be captain?’ No one once again needs that in the CSK setup,” AB de Villiers told Star Sports

“If those jets come up and the questions, CSK should be direct, clear, and straight to the point that Ruturaj is our man, there are no talks about any other captain. Sanju, MS, and some of the other senior play supporting roles,” he added.

Also Read: Sanju Samson Openly Warns Rajasthan Royals With Special CSK Pledge Before IPL 2026

De Villiers backs Gaikwad despite dismal captaincy record

After CSK won their fifth IPL title in 2023, MS Dhoni stepped down as the leader, and Maharashtra batter, Ruturaj Gaikwad was appointed his successor. Many expected a smooth transition to take place, but CSK crumbled under his guidance.

So far, Gaikwad has led CSK in 19 IPL matches, and under him, the franchise has won just 8 games, lost 11, and has a win percentage of just 42.10.

In his first season as the captain, Gaikwad led CSK to a fifth-place finish, and last season, he got injured midway through as MSD took over the mantle once again. Despite having a mediocre captaincy record, De Villiers has backed Gaikwad to continue leading the franchise.

How Sanju Samson has fared as IPL captain

Rajasthan Royals won the IPL title in the 2008 edition, and since then, the team has witnessed a downward curve. However, under Samson, the team had a revival period as the Kerala batter led them to the finale in 2022.

In 67 IPL matches where he led RR, Samson won 33 matches, and in the 2022 edition, he won 10 matches as captain of the Royals, his most in a single IPL season.

In terms of captaincy experience and record, CSK could be tempted to go towards Samson, but the RCB great has backed Gaikwad to continue leading the team for the IPL 2026.

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