IPL 2026 is just a few days away, and all ten teams have already started preparing for it, be it Chennai Super Kings, Rajasthan Royals and Punjab Kings. Teams are leaving no stone unturned in a bid to put their best foot forward from the very first match of the season.
The Defending Champions
Royal Challengers Bengaluru will enter the upcoming season as the defending champions and will look to win back to back title, a feat that has only been achieved by two teams, who happen to be two of the most successful teams in the history of the league: Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians, with five titles each.
The Teams
The team management of all ten teams has done their bit to assemble the strongest possible squad in the IPL player auction, and it will be up to the players to deliver a string performance on the field, either with the bat or ball, for the role that they have been picked in the squad in the first place.
The Players
As has been the case, more eyes will be on the likes of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni, three senior players in the Indian cricket circuit. Both Virat and Rohit will look at the upcoming season to get back in the groove, having not played professional cricket since the ODI series against New Zealand in January this year, with an eye on the 2027 ODI World Cup, which is less than a year away.
The Dhoni Effect
MS Dhoni, on the other hand, will be expected to set thestage on fire by clearing the boundary. It will be interesting to see if he comes up in the batting order, which hasn’t been the case in the last couple of years.
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The Momentum
With India winning the T20 World Cup, fans in India are already in the mood to watch T20 cricket, and the IPL will add more excitement as they will get to see the likes of Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, who was the player of the tournament and Jasprit Bumrah battling it out against each other.
This article contains the details of the team that Sanju Samson will play for in the next edition of the IPL.
The wicketkeeper batter was traded to Chennai Super Kings from Rajasthan Royals and is expected to bat in the top three. Sanju might open the innings depending on the position at which the captain of the team, Ruturaj Gaikwad, decides to bat.
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The Position
If we go by Gaikwad’s batting position in IPL last year, before hewas ruled out of the tournament due to an injury, which prompted MS Dhoni to take over as the captain, then right-hander batted at number three, which he might continue to do in 2026 as well. To add to that, Gaikwad, batting at number four for India in the home series against South Africa, scored a century as well.
The Option
Samson is also expected to keep wickets in at least a few matches with Dhoni playing as an impact player.
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