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From Jadeja trade to Samson transfer: RR's retention strategy before IPL 2026 auction decoded

Harsh Adwani

Rajasthan Royals Trades and Retentions [Source: @rajasthanroyals/x.com]Rajasthan Royals Trades and Retentions [Source: @rajasthanroyals/x.com]

Rajasthan Royals (RR) were one of the most active sides as the player retention window closed for the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). They have been in the news for a while now and have made some bold decisions. 

Now, they have a clear vision of what to expect in the player auctions in December. They will look to fill in some spaces and build a team that can help them win their second title in the tournament. On that note, let's decode Rajasthan Royals's trade strategy. 

Rajasthan Royals' trade masterstroke

The biggest news that has surrounded the Royals for days now is the trade of Sanju Samson for Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran from Chennai Super Kings (CSK), and this is a great move by them. Sure, Samson was a great leader for them and helped build a very strong side, but his ties with the team reached their culmination. 

Now that Jadeja and Sam Curran are in the team, they have a formidable lower-middle order, and the two can always give them eight overs between them. Having these quality all-rounders in the team will give them great balance. 

Jadeja did not have the best run in the 2025 season with the ball, but his figures with the bat made up for the bowling. He scored 301 runs, making it his best season with the bat, and he also took 10 wickets. 

Additionally, his record at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium is decent. He has scored 180 runs in 9 innings here and averages 45. The star all-rounder can be a great value addition for the Royals. 

Gaps that RR needs to fill

Trading out Samson means that the Men in Pink are without a captain. Riyan Parag, who captained them last season in Samson's absence, is an option, but his record was not the best. He won only two out of the eight games that he captained. Yashasvi Jaiswal has emerged as another option, and RR will have to make a tough call for their future. 

With the departure of Maheesh Theekshana, they also need to find a quality spinner who can support Jadeja in the Playing XI. They do not have any other full-time spinner who can fit in the playing XI at the moment. 

Another major move that Rajasthan made was trading Nitish Rana to Delhi Capitals for ₹4.2 crores. However, this might not have been the best decision. He had a decent season for them last time around despite shuffling quite a bit in the batting order. He scored 217 runs in 11 innings for them at a strike rate of 161.94. 

Nitish Rana's stats in IPL 2025

Matches 11
No 1
Runs 217
HS 81
Avg 21.70
BF 134
SR 161.94
100 0
50 2
4s 27
6s 9
CT 2
ST 0

Ideally, he could have been a good option at number three, and they will now have to look at somebody else to fulfil this role. Parag could get a promotion and he could move up a place in the batting order.

RR's Retention game for IPL 2026

Releasing some of the players from last season has freed up some funds as well. Wanindu Hasaranga, worth ₹5.25 crores and Maheesh Theekshana, worth ₹4.4 crores, have freed up some major funds for them. They will head into the auctions with a budget of ₹16.05 crores.  

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)

Conclusion

  • Ravindra Jadeja's and Sam Curran's addition to the team gives them great balance, flexibility, and experience in the lower-middle order and with the ball. 
  • With Sanju Samson now gone, they have a tough call to make with regard to captaincy. Riyan Parag and Yasasvi Jaiswal are the top contenders. 
  • They need to find a spin option who can support Jadeja. 
  • Trading out Nitish Rana may not have been the right move. They will now have to find a replacement for number three. 
  • RR have a decent budget of ₹16.05 heading into the player auctions.

OneCricket's trade and retention rating: 8/10