The IPL (Indian Premier League) 2026 is just about four months away, and all ten franchises are currently occupied with finalising their player strategy ahead of the upcoming mini auction. Teams are required to submit their list of retained players by November 15. On the other hand, social media is abuzz with speculation about possible player trades, though no official confirmations have been made so far.
Meanwhile, a few other big trade rumours have surfaced in this pre-auction excitement. Several reports suggest that CSK is targeting a move for Samson, while Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are exploring a potential trade for KL Rahul from Delhi Capitals (DC).
Additionally, KKR may part ways with their vice-captain Venkatesh Iyer, who has been unable to live up to his significant ₹23.75 crore price value.
According to reports, a major swap deal involving Sanju Samson is nearly finalised between the Rajasthan Royals (RR) and the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). If the trade goes through, Samson will move to CSK, while RR will acquire Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran in return.
Amid these retention plans, Mohammad Kaif assures that Dhoni will not shy away from trading Ravindra Jadeja for Sanju Samson if that move seems good for the CSK.
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Kaif said on his YouTube channel. “For Dhoni, making the team win is the biggest goal. If he is coming to play again, he will be thinking CSK finished 10th in the standings last year. He is a man of pride; hence, his biggest goal will be to make the team win another trophy. A team cannot win the trophy based on one player.”
When and where to take place?
According to a report by The Times of India, the IPL 2026 auction is likely to be held on December 15, with India expected to host the event. The last two auctions were conducted overseas, including the IPL 2025 mega auction, which took place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
