Chennai Super Kings have never been an ordinary team in the Indian Premier League not due to their consistent reinvention but because of the firmness of their stability, experience and intelligent brains in cricketing. With IPL 2026 getting closer, CSK are again placed in the same situation where they are under pressure to recover, but with one of the most balanced and considered squads in the tournament. The critics wondered if the golden era was or was passing after it had become the last in terms of IPL 2026. This article will provide complete information about CSK Team 2026.
CSK Team 2026 Purse & Auction Overview
One of the most crucial stages of CSK rebuild was the IPL 2026 auction. The management had an opportunity but also a duty of entering the auction with one of the biggest purses. Instead of diffusing the funds, CSK focussed their expenditure on some high-priced targets and role-specific players. Utilizing almost the entire purse highlights the franchise’s confidence in their planning. CSK rarely leave significant funds unused, and IPL 2026 is no exception. Every purchase was made with a clear role in mind.
| Category | Amount |
| Total Auction Purse | ₹125 crore |
| Amount Spent | ₹122.6 crore |
| Remaining Purse | ₹2.4 crore |
| RTM Cards Remaining | 0 |
Players Bought by CSK Team 2026 IPL Auction
The fact that they are using almost the entire purse is a sign that the franchise is confident in their planning. CSK hardly have lots of money left unexpensed, and IPL 2026 is not an exception. Each purchase was done with a specific role in mind.
CSK Players Bought – IPL 2026 Auction
| Player | Base Price | Final Bid |
| Akeal Hosein | ₹2 crore | ₹2 crore |
| Prashant Veer | ₹30 lakh | ₹14.2 crore |
| Kartik Sharma | ₹30 lakh | ₹14.2 crore |
| Matthew Short | ₹1.5 crore | ₹1.5 crore |
| Aman Hakim Khan | ₹30 lakh | ₹40 lakh |
| Sarfaraz Khan | ₹75 lakh | ₹75 lakh |
| Matt Henry | ₹2 crore | ₹2 crore |
| Rahul Chahar | ₹1 crore | ₹5.2 crore |
| Zak Foulkes | ₹75 lakh | ₹75 lakh |
The biggest headlines were due to the huge bids of Prashant Veer and Kartiksharma. Both of them were not that familiar to the rest of the world, yet they made a positive impact on CSK scouts through their performance in their respective countries. It is this readiness to support young Indian talent that is one of the success indicators of CSK over the years. The acquisition of Rahul Chahar helps to provide spin department with significant power whereas Akeal Hosein is left-arm spin variability and international experience. Matt Henry and Zak Foulkes are a solid pace additions to foreign weather.
CSK Team 2026 Retained Players
Chennai Super Kings are indeed uniquely distinct in terms of retention of players. The retained list of IPL 2026 reminds us of the belief of the franchise in continuity and development of players.
CSK Retained Players – IPL 2026
| Player | Salary |
| Ruturaj Gaikwad | ₹18 crore |
| Shivam Dube | ₹12 crore |
| Prashant Veer | ₹14.2 crore |
| Noor Ahmad | ₹10 crore |
| Khaleel Ahmed | ₹4.8 crore |
| MS Dhoni | ₹4 crore |
| Anshul Kamboj | ₹3.4 crore |
| Dewald Brevis | ₹2.2 crore |
| Gurjapneet Singh | ₹2.2 crore |
| Nathan Ellis | ₹2 crore |
| Jamie Overton | ₹1.5 crore |
| Mukesh Choudhary | ₹30 lakh |
| Ayush Mhatre | ₹30 lakh |
| Shreyas Gopal | ₹30 lakh |
| Ramakrishna Ghosh | ₹30 lakh |
| Urvil Patel | ₹30 lakh |
The fact that Ruturaj Gaikwad is retaining at ₹18 crore is an assurance that he is the future face of the franchise. His domination of the spin bowling particularly in Chennai conditions makes Shivam Dube very important. CSK’s retention of Noor Ahmad testifies to their faith in the art of winning matches by means of twisted wrists.
It is the presence of MS Dhoni that keeps CSK identified. He could have little influence in his batting, but his tactical input and leadership is unparalleled.
Why Sanju Samson Joins CSK Team 2026?
One of the most significant developments ahead of IPL 2026 was the trade that brought Sanju Samson into the Chennai Super Kings squad. The move added instant firepower and flexibility to CSK’s batting lineup. With the arrival of Samson, CSK will be able to reevaluate their batting structure. He is capable of opening the innings, playing in the middle order or stopping wickets and this gives him several tactics. This also assists in managing the workload of MS Dhoni where he is utilized in the situations that are mostly the high impact ones.
CSK Traded Player – IPL 2026
| Player | Salary |
| Sanju Samson | ₹18 crore |
Full CSK Team 2026 Categorized by Price & Role
Batters
| Player | Nationality | Salary |
| Ruturaj Gaikwad (Captain) | India | ₹18 crore |
| Sarfaraz Khan | India | ₹75 lakh |
| Dewald Brevis | South Africa | ₹2.2 crore |
| Ayush Mhatre | India | ₹75 lakh |
Wicket-Keepers
| Player | Nationality | Salary |
| MS Dhoni | India | ₹4 crore |
| Sanju Samson | India | ₹18 crore |
| Urvil Patel | India | ₹55 lakh |
| Kartik Sharma | India | ₹14.2 crore |
All-Rounders
| Player | Nationality | Salary |
| Shivam Dube | India | ₹12 crore |
| Jamie Overton | England | ₹1.5 crore |
| Matthew Short | Australia | ₹1.5 crore |
| Aman Hakim Khan | India | ₹40 lakh |
| Ramakrishna Ghosh | India | ₹30 lakh |
| Anshul Kamboj | India | ₹3.4 crore |
| Zak Foulkes | New Zealand | ₹75 lakh |
| Prashant Veer | India | ₹14.2 crore |
Spin Bowlers
| Player | Nationality | Salary |
| Noor Ahmad | Afghanistan | ₹10 crore |
| Rahul Chahar | India | ₹5.2 crore |
| Akeal Hosein | West Indies | ₹2 crore |
| Shreyas Gopal | India | ₹30 lakh |
Pace Bowlers
| Player | Nationality | Salary |
| Matt Henry | New Zealand | ₹2 crore |
| Nathan Ellis | Australia | ₹2 crore |
| Mukesh Choudhary | India | ₹30 lakh |
| Khaleel Ahmed | India | ₹4.8 crore |
| Gurjapneet Singh | India | ₹2.2 crore |
Such squad structure guarantees flexibility in conditions, as there is much spinning power in the home games and sufficient speed power in the away ones.
CSK IPL 2026 Team – Player
Ruturaj Gaikwad (Captain)
Ruturaj Gaikwad, who is captain of CSK in IPL 2026, is one of the technically sound openers in India. He has also earned the Orange Cap in the IPL 2021 and is another household name in the white-ball set-up in India.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Ruturaj Dashrat Gaikwad |
| Born | December 31, 1996, Pune |
| Role | Right-hand Batter, Captain |
| IPL Highlight | Orange Cap 2021 (635 runs) |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹16.5 Crore (Retained) |
Sarfaraz Khan
Sarfaraz Khan is a middle-order right handed batter who is dominating in the domestic cricket. He has played in several IPL teams and has an experience in situations of pressure.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Sarfaraz Naushad Khan |
| Born | October 27, 1996, Mumbai |
| Role | Right-hand Batter |
| IPL Teams | RCB, PBKS, DC |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹3.2 Crore |
Dewald Brevis
Dewald Brevis is a young South African batter who has been known to play with a bang. He attracted international recognition through amazing performances at record breaking world cup and T20 tournaments in the U19 category.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Dewald Brevis |
| Born | April 29, 2003, South Africa |
| Role | Left-hand Batter, Part-time Bowler |
| Key Feat | 162 in U19 WC |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹4 Crore |
Ayush Mhatre
Ayush Mhatre is a developing young batting star in the Indian cricket. On his IPL debut in 2025, he had hit a huge Ranji Trophy century on behalf of Mumbai.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Ayush Mhatre |
| Born | July 16, 2007 |
| Role | Right-hand Batter |
| Domestic Highlight | Ranji 176 |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹1.2 Crore |
MS Dhoni
The iconic figure in the history of CSK is a legendary cricketer, MS Dhoni. His leadership, and completion skills, as well as his mentorship, bring tremendous value to the franchise.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Mahendra Singh Dhoni |
| Born | July 7, 1981, Ranchi |
| Role | Wicket-keeper Batter |
| Achievements | 3 ICC trophies |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹12 Crore |
Sanju Samson
Sanju Samson is an overbearing wicket-keeper batter who plays with elegant strokes. He is a batter with a score of more than 4,400 runs in IPL and one of the best T20 batters in India.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Sanju Viswanath Samson |
| Born | November 11, 1994 |
| Role | WK-Batter |
| IPL Runs | 4,470+ |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹14 Crore |
Urvil Patel
Urvil Patel is a wicket-keeper batter who is renowned to deliver lightning starts in T20 cricket. He has not failed to impress in the domestic tournaments representing Gujarat.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Urvil Patel |
| Born | October 16, 1998 |
| Role | WK-Batter |
| Domestic Team | Gujarat |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹80 Lakh |
Kartik Sharma
Kartik Sharma is a young wicket-keeper batter, who made the most expensive uncapped player in IPL 2026. CSK had invested much in him as a prospect in the long run.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Kartik Sharma |
| Born | April 26, 2006 |
| Role | WK-Batter |
| Special Note | Highest uncapped bid |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹14.2 Crore |
Shivam Dube
Shivam Dube is a strong batting all-rounder who has been instrumental in the successes of CSK in the recent past. He was also included in the winning T20 world cup squad of India in 2024.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Shivam Dube |
| Born | June 1, 1993 |
| Role | All-rounder |
| Major Win | T20 WC 2024 |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹9 Crore |
Jamie Overton
Jamie Overton is an English all-rounder bowler and when he is fast, he is very fast. He enriches the overseas bowling and lower-order hitting of CSK.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Jamie Overton |
| Born | 1994, England |
| Role | Fast-bowling All-rounder |
| Test Debut | 2022 |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹3.5 Crore |
Matthew Short
Matthew Short, is an Australian all-rounder and high strike rate in T20. His off-spin bowling provides the flexibility to CSK.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Matthew William Short |
| Born | November 8, 1995 |
| Role | Batting All-rounder |
| T20 SR | 160+ |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹2 Crore |
Aman Hakim Khan
Aman Hakim Khan is a seam bowling all rounder who has the exposure in India A. He makes CSK a stronger Indian with a core.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Aman Hakim Khan |
| Born | November 22, 1996 |
| Role | All-rounder |
| Teams | India A |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹60 Lakh |
Noor Ahmad
Noor Ahmad is an Afghan left-arm wrist spinner who is famous because of mystery spin. He is very successful with slow and turning pitches.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Noor Ahmad Lakanwal |
| Born | January 3, 2005 |
| Role | Left-arm Wrist Spinner |
| Strength | Mystery spin |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹5 Crore |
Rahul Chahar
Rahul Chahar is an Indian leg-spinner who has won several IPL titles. He is reputed to be controlling and change of middle overs.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Rahul Chahar |
| Born | August 3, 1999 |
| Role | Leg-spinner |
| IPL Titles | MI (2019, 2020) |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹6 Crore |
Akeal Hosein
Akeal Hosein is a left-arm orthodox spinner having international experience of West Indies. In particular, he can be effective in powerplay overs.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Akeal Hosein |
| Born | 1993 |
| Role | Left-arm Orthodox |
| Special Feat | PSL hat-trick |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹2.5 Crore |
Matt Henry
Matt Henry is a New Zealand fast bowler who is a swing bowler and an accurate bowler. He offers CSK with a viable new-ball alternative.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Matt Henry |
| Born | 1991 |
| Role | Right-arm Fast |
| Strength | Powerplay wickets |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹3 Crore |
Prashant Veer
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Prashant Ramendra Veer |
| Born | 24 November 2005 |
| Role | Slow left-arm orthodox spin |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹14.2 crore |
Khaleel Ahmed
Khaleel Ahmed is an accomplished left arm pacer with vast exposure in the IPL. He can swing the ball therefore making him useful in Indian conditions.
| Aspect | Details |
| Full Name | Khaleel Ahmed |
| Born | December 5, 1997 |
| Role | Left-arm Fast |
| IPL Matches | 70+ |
| IPL 2026 Price | ₹4.5 Crore |
CSK Team IPL Records and Historical Dominance
CSK’s greatness is reflected not just in trophies but in consistent performances across seasons.
CSK IPL Standings (2008–end 2025)
| Season | Position | Result |
| 2025 | 10th | League Stage |
| 2024 | 5th | League Stage |
| 2023 | 1st | Champions |
| 2022 | 9th | League Stage |
| 2021 | 1st | Champions |
| 2020 | 7th | League Stage |
| 2019 | 2nd | Runners-up |
| 2018 | 1st | Champions |
| 2011 | 1st | Champions |
| 2010 | 1st | Champions |
Most Runs for CSK in IPL
| Player | Matches | Runs |
| Suresh Raina | 200 | 5529 |
| MS Dhoni | 272 | 5314 |
| Faf du Plessis | 100 | 2932 |
| Ruturaj Gaikwad | 71 | 2502 |
| Ravindra Jadeja | 200 | 2354 |
Most Wickets for CSK in IPL
| Player | Matches | Wickets |
| Dwayne Bravo | 130 | 154 |
| Ravindra Jadeja | 200 | 152 |
| Ravi Ashwin | 130 | 127 |
| Albie Morkel | 92 | 91 |
| Deepak Chahar | 76 | 76 |
These numbers highlight why CSK are often described as the most consistent franchise in IPL history.
CSK Blueprint for IPL 2026
The IPL 2026 plans of CSK are based on the concept of managing the middle overs, ensuring that the nature is as spin-friendly as possible, and preserving depth in batting. Chennai has one of the best spin arsenals in the league comprising Noor Ahmad, Rahul Chahar, Akeal Hosein and Shreyas Gopal. Ruturaj Gaikwad and Sanju Samson are a very balanced top-order, and they combine accuracy with aggressiveness batting-wise. Shivam Dube and Dewald Brevis are middle order power and ultimately, MS Dhoni is the finisher and tactical leader.
Conclusion
Chennai Super Kings have something to prove in IPL 2026. The franchise has reacted with clarity and confidence to a rare bottom-table finish in 2025. It still faces challenges especially in death-over bowling, but the balance in the squad remains impressive so far. In case of their spin unit prevailing at Chepauk and top order performing constantly, CSK has a good chance of winning the play offs. Stability with respect to the leadership, tactical discipline, and rich squad, IPL 2026 may be the next chapter in the history of the Chennai Super Kings history that is glorious.
FAQs
Ruturaj Gaikwad has been appointed as the captain of the Chennai Super Kings in the IPL 2026, and his role as the captain of this team is the same as last year.
Yes, MS Dhoni is a member of CSK team in IPL 2026 and still plays the role of a wicketkeeper, finisher, and mentor.
The most expensive purchases of CSK in the IPL 2026 auction were Prashant Veer and Kartik Sharma who were bought at 14.2 crore each.
The most costly retained player by CSK in IPL 2026 is Ruturaj Gaikwad who is retained at ₹18 crore.
CSK has a balanced team, good spin attack, and a seasoned management, implying that it is a good team to make it to playoffs in IPL 20
Read More:
Ackeem Wayne Jarrell Auguste: Age, Height, Nationality, Religion, Stats and More
IPL Retention 2026 : Date, List, Date and Time, Venue and More
