Chennai Super Kings have a lot of rethinking and restructuring to do after a disastrous IPL 2025 season. The five-time champions etched their names in the wrong side of history by finishing at the bottom of the table for the first time in the tournament. From getting the team combination right to backing players who failed repeatedly, MS Dhoni and co. had a forgetful IPL season altogether. A report had claimed that CSK were planning to release five players before the IPL 2026 auction. However, the team brushed aside the speculations with a witty social media post.
It is pertinent to point out that the teams must decide on their retentions and releases by November 15. The mini-auction will be held in December. Ahead of the deadline, let us take a look at some players CSK might possibly release.
CSK release list for IPL 2026
1. Rahul Tripathi
Signed for Rs 3.40 crore, Tripathi was an utter failure for CSK in IPL 2025. He managed to score just 55 runs in 5 matches, maintaining a miserable average of 11. Since Rahul got no more chances after playing 5 games, it is better for CSK to release him before IPL 2026, free-up their purse and perhaps use that money to target another youngster or rather a specialist top-order batter.
2. Deepak Hooda
The Baroda all-rounder was bagged by CSK for Rs 1.70 crore in the IPL 2025 mega auction. However, despite being an experienced campaigner in the IPL, he managed to score just 31 runs in five innings at a strike rate of 75.61 and averaged 6.20. Although he batted down the order, it is no less than justification to have such numbers in the shortest format of the game in modern day cricket.
3. Vijay Shankar
The former Tamil Nadu all-rounder, who made his debut way back in 2014 with CSK, was bagged by the 5-time champions for Rs 1.70 crore. Despite featuring in 6 games in IPL 2025, Shankar managed to score just 118 runs at an average of 39.33. He simply failed to live up to the expectations of a finisher in contemporary cricket, registering a highest score of 69* which also happened to be the only occasion when he got a fifty. CSK never used him as a bowler, which makes his inclusion in the playing XI more useless.
