'Ajinkya Rahane Captained Well': Ex-India Player Dissects The Possibilities Of Sanju Samson Making A Landmark Move Of Playing For KKR In IPL 2026

cPrevious Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Rajasthan Royals and Kolkata Knight Riders had a season to forget in the eighteenth edition. With eight points from fourteen games, Rajasthan Royals finished on the ninth spot, whereas the Kolkata Knight Riders finished on the eighth spot with 12 points from 14 games. The Kolkata Knight Riders were the defending champions of the coveted trophy in the 2025 season, but their campaign could never get going.

Rajasthan Royals, on the other hand, had problems of their own. The Royals had released Buttler much ahead of the IPL 2025 Mega Auctions, and the opening slot was something that they couldn't figure out till the time a young Vaibhav Suryavanshi came along. Injury issues to Sanju Samson didn't help the team either. There were also a few rumours of rift in the dressing room, and the franchise's results showed that something was not okay in the Jaipur-based camp.

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Aakash Chopra's Bold Remark on Sanju Samson and KKR

Rajasthan Royals skipper Sanju Samson, who had started his IPL journey while playing for the Kolkata Knight Riders back in 2012, has reportedly informed the Rajasthan Royals management that he wants to explore other opportunities. If Sanju moves out of the Rajasthan Royals, then it will mark the end of his decade-long journey with the franchise.

Samson is also being linked to Chennai Super Kings, but former India player Aakash Chopra feels that KKR might be more desperate to acquire Samson's services. "KKR should be the most desperate team. They don't have an Indian wicketkeeper-batter, and that just ties their hands behind their back. Ajinkya Rahane as a batter either he opens or else the batting order has been a bit of a problem," said Chopra while speaking on his YouTube channel.

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Dissecting Sanju Samson's IPL Numbers

Sanju Samson has played 176 IPL matches so far and has scored 4,704 runs. Samson has faced 3,383 balls, and he averages 30.75. Samson has 3 IPL hundreds to his name.