Former India player turned analyst Krish Srikkanth has said that the Rajasthan Royals (RR) Captain Sanju Samson would be a suitable replacement for MS Dhoni at Chennai Super Kings (CSK) as well. Srikkanth also shared that if Samson is willing to leave RR, he would include him in the CSK squad to begin the transition as well.

Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel ‘Cheeky Cheeka’:  “To tell you the truth, Sanju is a brilliant player and he’s very popular in Chennai. He’s got a good brand image in Chennai. As I said, I’ll be the first one to pick him for Chennai if he is willing to leave and comes this side.”

“He’s the right replacement for MS Dhoni. Dhoni can maximum play this season, maybe not the year after and then you can have a smooth transition. But I feel if Ruturaj Gaikwad has been given the captaincy, he should be continued with,” he again shared.

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However, Krish Srikkanth also said that he would not let go of Sanju Samson if he were part of the Rajasthan Royals as well. He also felt that the franchise had built the squad around him, and his departure could raise questions about the team’s balance as well.

“Going by the paper reports, there seems to be a rift between him and Rahul Dravid, but I am not fully aware. Look at it from a franchise point of view. They have paid him a certain amount and retained him. They have formed the team around him. All of a sudden, if you release him, what happens to the team balance? They haven’t won the IPL since 2008,” he shared.

“They have reached the final after that. I don’t think I would let go of Sanju Samson. If they want to promote Riyan Parag as captain, that is their choice. I would still play Samson as a batter. He’s been paid Rs 18 crore,” Kris Srikkanth concluded.