Chennai Super Kings (CSK) uncharacteristically betted on uncapped stars by spending large amounts on IPL 2026 auction. The franchise, which has previously relied mainly on experienced players, splashed a total of INR 14.2 crores on Prashant Veer and Kartik Sharma each, who have now set a record for the most expensive uncapped players in IPL history. This action also reset Avesh Khan’s earlier record of INR 10 crore, which the latter had got when the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) picked him up at the IPL 2022 auction.
CSK CEO Kasi Vishwanathan was grilled in the press conference after the auction about the bids and the thinking behind them.
Kasi disclosed on JioHotstar, “You would have seen how CSK’s team changed last season when youngsters came in. We felt at the same time, that change in the type of cricket being played should lead to the change in the team’s culture by getting some youngsters into the team. Our talent scouting was working very hard with the two guys being very good and having a good future. Springboard into the big stage of IPL is of course a challenge and we want to watch their development.”
What is more, this transformation was apparent as early as last season when the long-serving players of CSK could not perform and the franchise resorted to the likes of Ayush Mhatre, Urvil Patel, and Dewald Brevis who were signed as injury replacements and displayed their talent very promisingly.
Did CSK locate replacements for MS Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja such that the IPL 2026 auction would be long-term?
CSK, with Ravindra Jadeja traded out and MS Dhoni in the last moments of his career, chose to invest in the future and not to hold back on spending a lot.
Prashant Veer is a left-handed spinner who might be seen as a future investment to take over the role of Ravindra Jadeja at CSK. Just as Jadeja, he is a middle-order batter and can also make a difference with his left-arm orthodox spin.
But, on the other hand, Kartik Sharma provides more options in the death batting role – a category where MS Dhoni ruled during his best years. Even though CSK have made a change in the wicketkeeper-batter position with the coming of Sanju Samson, he is mainly a top-order batter while Kartik can be a clone of MS Dhoni in terms of wicket-keeping skills.
Besides, the 22-year-old has been unplayable in SMAT 2025 and can become an essential part of the CSK crew if he can deliver the management’s confidence.
