India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has offered a very unusual perspective on the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) retention predicament, boldly stating that he would not keep Mahendra Singh Dhoni as an uncapped player ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 big auction. Instead, Ashwin has recommended a new name as an uncapped retention for CSK, while keeping Dhoni as a capped player and one of the five major retentions. Ashwin shared his thoughts about retention on his YouTube channel.
We have Ruturaj (Gaikwad), Jadeja (Ravindra Jadeja), Matheesha Pathirana, Shivam Dube, MS Dhoni, and Sameer Rizvi,” Ashwin stated.
Former South Africa performance analyst Prasanna Raman, also known as ‘PDogg’, disagreed with Ashwin. “I don’t think you should keep Sameer Rizvi for Rs 4 crore. “I don’t even know if he would agree to play for Rs 4 crore,” Raman said.
Rizvi, who was bought ahead of the IPL 2024 for a hefty Rs 8.4 crore, failed to impress, hitting only 51 runs in eight games with a strike rate of 118. Despite this, Ashwin remained optimistic about Rizvi, praising his outstanding form in the UP T20 League and noting that many similar players are available, which would not significantly increase Rizvi’s price.
“He has put up a show every day. He’s playing at a different level in the UP T20. He has a lot of upside potential. He will be in the same category as Shahrukh Khan, Abhinav Manohar, and Dhruv Jurel.”
The IPL Governing Council’s decision to reinstate the provision that Indian players who haven’t played internationally in five years or more can be retained as ‘uncapped’ gave CSK a way to keep five-time IPL champion Dhoni for just Rs 4 crore. However, Ashwin’s point of view could help CSK maintain a strong Indian base. Between 2008 and 2015, Ashwin played for CSK and won two IPL titles.