After finishing ninth in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season, Rajasthan Royals (RR) have made some high-profile trade deals ahead of the IPL 2026 mini auction. RR’s long-time captain Sanju Samson has been traded to Chennai Super Kings (CSK). All-rounders Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran have been traded in by RR from CSK, with the veteran India star taking a salary cut from Rs 18 crore to Rs 14 crore. With Samson gone, the inaugural IPL champions will have a big decision to take when it comes to captaincy for IPL 2026.
RR have let go of Sri Lankan spin duo Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana, as well as Afghan fast bowler Fazalhaq Farooqi.
Rajasthan Royals have retained the services of star opener Yashasvi Jaiswal and 14-year-old sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi. The latter experienced a breakout season in 2025, smashing the fastest-ever IPL century by an Indian (off 35 balls).
Riyan Parag and Dhruv Jurel have both been retained despite their hefty pricetags of Rs 14 crore each. Shimron Hetmyer has also been retained at his Rs 11 crore fee.
Four uncapped players have been released by RR. Pacers Akash Madhwal and Ashok Sharma have been released, as well as spinner Kumar Kartikeya and batter Kunal Rathore.
Rajasthan Royals will enter the IPL 2026 auction with a purse of Rs 16.05 crore, giving them the liberty to make one or two expensive purchases.
Players Retained: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag, Shimron Hetmyer, Shubham Dubey, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Jofra Archer, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Sharma, Kwena Maphaka, Nandre Burger, Lhuan-dre Pretorius
Players Released: Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Akash Madhwal, Kumar Kartikeya, Kunal Rathore, Ashok Sharma.
Players Traded In: Ravindra Jadeja (from Chennai Super Kings), Sam Curran (from Chennai Super Kings), Donovan Ferreira (from Delhi Capitals)
Players Traded Out: Sanju Samson (to Rajasthan Royals), Nitish Rana (to Delhi Capitals)
AUCTION BUDGET: Rs 16.05 crore
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‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source sports.ndtv.com ’
