With just a week left for IPL auction 2026, all teams would have already readied their strategies about which players to buy, and the ones to avoid, despite temptation. No one can really tell what that plan would be, until the events unfold on December 16, in Abu Dhabi. But one can certainly predict, how the strategy could look. So, InsideSport takes a look at their potential plan for IPL auction 2026.
CSK retention list for IPL 2026
Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Ayush Mhatre, Dewald Brevis, MS Dhoni, Urvil Patel, Shivam Dube, Jamie Overton, Ramakrishna Ghosh, Noor Ahmad, Khaleel Ahmed, Anshul Kamboj, Gurjapneet Singh, Nathan Ellis, Shreyas Gopal, Mukesh Choudhary, Sanju Samson (traded in).
Chennai Super Kings release list
Matheesha Pathirana, Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, Rahul Tripathi, Deepak Hooda, Vijay Shankar, Shaikh Rasheed, Andre Siddarth, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Vansh Bedi, Ravindra Jadeja/ Sam Curran (traded out).
Purse & slots for IPL auction 2026
Chennai has the second highest purse left for the IPL auction 2026 — 43.40 Cr. They have about 12 vacancies in the squad for IPL 2026, which must all be filled. Which effectively means, the team would be out with a new setup in next year’s competition.
CSK strategy
The team has enough money to compile a squad, that can serve them for the next couple of years easily. Their focus can now solely be on developing a team, which has younger players in it. The inclusion Sanju Samson has already kick-started things in the right direction. After the ouster of Curran, their focus should be on one overseas all-rounder, re-laid emphasis on strengthening batting order with Indian players, and a bunch of spinners and pacer; both Indian and overseas.
| Specialisation | Player |
|---|---|
| Overseas all-rounder | Liam Livingstone/ Beau Webster/ Dasun Shanaka/ Wiaan Mulder |
| Indian batters | Prithvi Shaw/ Sarfaraz Khan |
| Spinners | Wanindu Hasaranga/ Shams Mulani/ Rahul Chahar/ Ravi Bishnoi |
| Pacers | Akash Deep/ Matt Henry/ Anrich Nortje/ Umesh Yadav/ Mustafizur Rahman |
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