Former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) wicketkeeper Robin Uthappa has offered Vijay Shankar alongside Ravichandran Ashwin in the rumored IPL trade switch with the Rajasthan Royals (RR) for Sanju Samson.
According
to several reports, both Samson and Ashwin want out of RR and CSK, respectively, and have conveyed the decision to the teams. Samson is being seen as a good future MS Dhoni replacement, while Ashwin also has a history with RR, as one of their better bowlers for a few years till being released in 2024.
Some reports suggest that RR are open to trading Samson but want two CSK players in return, which haven’t been confirmed.
“CSK for sure. If they are able to get him and if they are able to snap him up, then it’ll do really well for him,” Uthappa said in a video on his YouTube channel. “I think the transition of MS Dhoni to the next wicketkeeper, they already have in Sanju, so that is already taken care of. Otherwise, they would have to look at, say, at this point, say Devon Conway as a wicketkeeping option. But if he comes onboard, there is a lot of good that can happen for CSK,” he added.
“What they don’t have? They only have Shimron Hetmyer at six. They don’t have a finisher at number six or seven. Maybe Sam Curran. Vijay Shankar could be the one who goes with Ashwin as well. That could happen. He’s a pretty decent bowler, but they haven’t utilised him.”
Shankar, who played the 2019 World Cup for India, has never seen his IPL career take off, with 1233 runs at a strike rate of under 130 and nine wickets in 78 matches. For CSK, he has played seven matches for 118 runs but bowled just once.
Why trading Samson makes sense for RR
Uthappa also said that the emergence of a new crop of top-order players and Samson’s desire to look for game time elsewhere in his favored position, the move makes sense for RR too.
“They have both Yashasvi, who has done really well for them, and Suryavanshi has absolutely smacked it out of the park, and Riyan Parag likes to bat at number three. Where does that leave Sanju Samson? A number four spot. Would I want to bat at number four when I am opening for India? Absolutely not. From his perspective, he probably felt that perhaps that won’t change at RR, and they back their youngsters, quite a bit, don’t they?”
“I think perhaps Rajasthan also feel Sanju doesn’t want to be there anymore, so if a player doesn’t want to be there, why do we have to keep him? Give him what he wants. In that sense, I think it makes sense for them,” Uthappa said.
Ashwin earns Rs. 9.75 crore from CSK and Shankar Rs. 1.2 crore. To trade Samson, who earns Rs. 18 crore at RR, CSK will also have to provide cash value of just over Rs. 7 crore to the Royals in such a trade.
