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‘Ruturaj Gaikwad wants to bat at no. 3… won’t open with Sanju Samson': Ashwin makes huge CSK prediction for IPL 2026
Many fans are expecting Sanju Samson to open with Ruturaj Gaikwad in IPL 2026.
Sanju Samson's transfer to Chennai Super Kings (CSK) has become one of the key talking points ahead of IPL 2026. CSK traded Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran for Samson. The deal saw Jadeja return to Rajasthan Royals (RR) after more than a decade, having played the first two IPL seasons with the franchise.
The move could see CSK skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad open with Samson in IPL 2026, which could be a huge boost to their title ambitions.
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Speaking on his YouTube channel, R Ashwin weighed in on the probability of Samson opening with Gaikwad and felt that they would bring different qualities as opening partners.
"There is pedigree with Ruturaj Gaikwad and Sanju Samson. Pedigree means you making quality runs and sustaining that for a period of time. We must not forget that. For me, I would love to see both of them go hammer and tongs at the opening slot. Both of them have different strengths. One is a caresser of the ball, while the other guy hits it hard so both of those qualities are there. So I will look at it in that fashion that I have two good openers," he said.
The former India cricketer also feels that if Samson opens, then it would be hard for CSK management to fit Urvil Patel in the batting order.
He said, "But the early signs are that Ruturaj wants to bat at number 3 because he’s also batting at no 3 for Maharashtra. Which begs the question where will Urvil Patel bat? CSK are looking at Andre Russell very hard. Let’s see who all are there in the auction. I still think Urvil Patel can play at no 4. But then if he comes at number 4 it becomes completely right handed. But Urvil takes on the powerplay. So if we open with Rutu and Sanju, Urvil can come in at number 3 but Ayush has scored runs. It’s a tricky question but we’ll see how they solve their top four conundrum?"
Samson featured for RR in 149 IPL matches, registering 4027 runs, and also got two tons and 23 half-centuries. He also captained RR from 2021.
