Sanju Samson’s IPL 2026 rollercoaster has flipped dramatically since his switch to Chennai Super Kings. After CSK traded him for Ravindra Jadeja, the wicketkeeper-batter endured a shaky start to the season, producing three single-digit scores in his opening outings, with each of those knocks ending in defeat for his new franchise. However, Samson has since found a new gear: he has posted three scores of 50-plus in seven matches, including a commanding match-winning 87 not out off 52 balls against Delhi Capitals on Tuesday on a difficult pitch. Aaron Finch praised the way Samson has handled the weight of expectations and settled into CSK’s setup.
Finch highlighted the early uncertainty around Samson’s move, noting that the narrative can shift quickly in T20 cricket.
“He missed out on the first couple of games, didn’t he? Then suddenly it felt like there was real panic about what CSK had done,” Finch said on ESPNcricinfo’s TimeOut show. “They’ve got Sanju Samson and he’s not producing. Two games in T20 is nothing. To get through an entire season ultra-consistently is so hard. You can’t easily ignore the pressure that comes with joining a side like CSK, especially when you’re a major marquee signing and the trade involved sending someone like Jadeja out of the group.
“Even though he [Samson] had that dream run at the end of the World Cup, and then he’s come into CSK and missed a couple of times, there will still be pride and pressure. There’s also that feeling that you want to prove a point quickly—almost like you need to lay down a marker and say, ‘I’m here.’ And you want to validate that you’re the superstar they were looking for. So to see him bat at a different level is fantastic.”
Samson’s turnaround and CSK’s recent momentum
Following his Player-of-the-tournament success at the T20 World Cup—where India defended the title at home—Samson has carried that form into IPL 2026 as one of CSK’s most influential batters. Across ten innings this season, he has amassed 402 runs at an average of 57.42, striking at 167.50. Finch’s comments reflect how quickly pressure can mount around big-name transfers, but Samson’s performances have steadily reduced the noise.
Even at his previous franchise, Rajasthan Royals, Samson generally looked dangerous early, yet he often struggled to sustain the same level of consistency across the full campaign. Deep Dasgupta, who has watched Samson closely, believes CSK has unlocked the version they hoped to see for years.
“This is the version of Sanju Samson we’ve wanted to see for quite a few years now,” Dasgupta said. “Every season you’d spot one or two innings where you think, ‘Wow, what a player!’—but then it would just become those couple of performances. Now, starting from the World Cup, and especially this season, he’s been incredibly consistent. In fact, this season’s standout pattern is that once he gets past 50, he doesn’t stop—when he goes beyond fifty, he ends up making a hundred, and he stays not out. The way he played that 87 not out was brilliant, and it looked like he was operating on a completely different surface.”
- Samson’s early IPL 2026 phase included three single-digit scores and defeats for CSK in those matches.
- Since then, he has delivered three fifty-plus innings in seven outings, showing a clear shift in form.
- Against Delhi Capitals on Tuesday, he produced a match-winning 87 not out off 52 balls on a tough pitch.
- After the DC win, CSK remained sixth in the points standings.
- Even with the victory, CSK were only two points behind the teams occupying positions second through fifth.
With Samson’s batting now providing the spark CSK needed, the franchise’s climb looks increasingly plausible—though the table remains tightly packed around them.
