Rumors say Sanju Samson may exit Rajasthan Royals amid growing differences. Aakash Chopra hints that shifts in team dynamics and emerging talents could be influencing Samson’s decision, raising questions about his future with the franchise.
The rumours of Sanju Samson’s possible exit from Rajasthan Royals ahead of the IPL 2026 have been rife day by day. Following the conclusion of the Royals’ campaign in the IPL 2025, it was speculated that Samson was likely to leave the franchise before the next season of the cash-rich T20 League in the world.
As per the report by Cricbuzz, there have been growing differences between Samson and the Rajasthan Royals, and the skipper reportedly asked the franchise to either trade him or release him into the auction ahead of the IPL 2026. However, there has been no clear reason as to why Sanju Samson wanted to part ways with the RR, with whom he made his IPL debut in 2013 and played for a decade till 2025.
The growing buzz has been the potential trading of Sanju Samson to the Chennai Super Kings, who reportedly expressed their desire to sign the wicketkeeper-batter through a swap deal if he was available for it. However, Rajasthan Royals reportedly expressed their willingness not to trade Samson as he has been the ‘undisputed captain’ for the team.
What is the reason behind Samson’s potential exit?
Since there has been no confirmation of Sanju Samson’s rumours of leaving the Rajasthan Royals, former India cricketer turned commentator Aakash Chopra has revealed the reason behind Samson’s willingness to exit the franchise.
Speaking on his YouTube Channel, Aakash stated that Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s exploits in the IPL season and the recently concluded India U19 tour of England have pushed Sanju Samson to feel his spot in the team is under threat.
“Why would Sanju Samson want to leave? It’s interesting because when the last mega auction happened, they let Jos Buttler go, and I felt they let Jos Buttler go because Yashasvi had come and Sanju wanted to open, and Sanju and Rajasthan Royals were really, really thick,” Aakash Chopra said.
“I felt there would have been a massive input from Sanju in the players they retained or released. However, now it seems it might not have been there. Vaibhav Suryavanshi has come, so two openers are already ready, and you also want to bat Dhruv Jurel up the order. So Sanju wishes to leave,” he added.
Interestingly, when Sanju Samson was ruled out of a few matches due to an abdominal injury sustained in the match against the Delhi Capitals, it was Vaibhav Suryavanshi who replaced him in the playing XI. Suryavanshi made his arrival with a first-ball six and played a blistering knock of 34 off 20 balls against Lucknow Super Giants, before notching up a record-breaking century against the Gujarat Titans.
The rise of Vaibhav Suryavanshi
Vaibhav Suryavanshi shot to fame before making his IPL debut when he slammed a 58-ball century for India A against Australia A in a four-day match. The 14-year-old played a pivotal role in helping India U19 reach the final of the Asia Cup U19, where they lost to Bangladesh.
Suryavanshi had a dream IPL season as the youngest player of the tournament, amassing 252 runs, including a century and a fifty, at an average of 36 and an astounding strike rate of 206 in seven matches. His performance in the IPL 2025 found him a spot in the India U19 squad for the Youth ODI series against two multi-day matches against England.
Suryavanshi carried on his impressive form from IPL into the Youth ODI series against England, as he amassed 355 runs, including a century and a fifty, at an average of 71.00 in 5 matches and was the highest run-getter of the series. Given his consistent performance in IPL and Youth ODI series, Vaibhav Suryavanshi has been touted as the next big thing in Indian cricket.
Rajasthan Royals management is already grooming Vaibhav Suryavanshi as a future star and key player after they bought him for INR 1.1 crore at the IPL auction last year.