Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson is at the center of an intense speculation over his potential exit from the franchise. Samson didn’t have the best of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 campaign, which also saw him miss a few games due to injury and play some as an Impact Player.
Though the player retention deadline for the next season is a few months away, Samson has reportedly told the RR franchise bosses that he wants to leave ahead of the auction for the 2026 season. Though no concrete reasons are known behind this speculation, it has been said that the relationship between Samson and Rahul Dravid in the franchise isn’t the best at the moment.
India’s 1983 World Cup-winner, Kris Srikkanth, addressed the rumours of a possible ‘rift’ between Samson and Dravid, saying that though he isn’t fully aware of such a situation, it doesn’t make sense for the franchise to release its skipper.
“Going by the reports, there seems to be a rift between him and Rahul Dravid, but I am not fully aware. Look at it from a franchise point of view. They have paid him a certain amount and retained him. They have formed the team around him. All of a sudden, if you release him, what happens to the team balance? They haven’t won the IPL since 2008,” said Srikkanth on his YouTube channel.
“They have reached the final after that. I don’t think I would let go of Sanju Samson. If they want to promote Riyan Parag as captain, that is their choice. I would still play Samson as a batter. He’s been paid INR 18 crore,” he added.
In an interview, Samson was asked by former RR teammate Ravichandran Ashwin about his relationship with the franchise. Samson answered the question, but without dropping a hint about his future.
“RR has meant the world to me. A small child coming from a village in Kerala, wanting to show his talent. And then Rahul (Dravid) sir and Manoj Badale sir gave me a stage to get up and show the world what I am made of,” Samson told former India spinner R Ashwin in his YouTube show.
“That time, they trusted me throughout. The journey with RR has been really great, and I’m very grateful to have been in a franchise like that. It really means a lot to me,” Samson added.