Will CSK Bid For Rishabh Pant in Mega Auction? CEO Kasi Viswanathan Opens Up, ‘Discussed With Ruturaj, MS…’

Last Updated:November 10, 2024, 17:46 IST

Several media reports had stated that CSK are willing to have Pant onboard right after India’s victorious T20 World Cup campaign while his release from DC further escalated the rumours.

Will CSK go for Rishabh Pant in IPL 2025 mega auctions?

Rishabh Pant will be up for grabs in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 mega auctions. After getting released by Delhi Capitals, the Indian wicketkeeper-batter is expected to set the auction table ablaze. Several media reports had stated that Chennai Super Kings (CSK) are willing to have Pant onboard right after India’s victorious T20 World Cup campaign while his release from DC further escalated the rumours.

Meanwhile, CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan opened up for the first time on talks about the 5-time champions going all guns blazing after the Indian keeper batter. In a conversation with former CSK batsman Ambati Rayudu on Provoke TV, Viswanathan did not rule out the possibility but added that the team is more interested in bringing back their own players and keeping a core lineup from the 2025 season.

“We had discussions with Ruturaj, the captain, MS (Dhoni) and coach Stephen Fleming before we decided on the retentions. We were very clear that the players that helped the team grow, and stabilise in the previous years were the ones very important for the CSK team to continue further,” Viswanathan said.

“It was very easy to decide on the retentions – Gaikwad, Jaddu, MS, Shivam Dube and Matheesha Pathirana. But we knew that if we retained these players, we would have a lesser purse to go into the auction. We knew that we wouldn’t be able to compete with the other teams when it came to the best of the Indian players. I mean, we will still try, but I don’t think we’ll be able to get them at the auction,” he added.

Pant is one of the high-profile Indian players to enter the IPL 2025 mega auction, alongside KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer. All three of them led their respective franchises before entering the auction pool and enlisting themselves in the INR 2 crore price category.