Andre Russell to join MS Dhoni’s army! CSK’s secret talks, Matheesha Pathirana exit linked to auction plan
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The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have been revealed to have made some backdoor talks, which led the franchises to release the likes of Matheesha Pathirana and Andre Russell by their respective franchises.
The Chennai Super Kings and the Kolkata Knight Riders have revealed their retained squad ahead of the mini-auction. KKR has the highest purse, followed by CSK.
They released some of their most experienced players ahead of the next season. Chennai Super Kings parted ways with veteran all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, and KKR parted with longtime asset Andre Russell.
Andre Russell wanted to explore options outside of KKR
Kolkata Knight Riders shocked all with a move on from their prized all-round asset in the shortest format of the game. They parted ways with the Kolkata Knight Riders kingpin Andre Russell, who has played almost the entire stretch of his IPL career with the Knights.
The Caribbean genius has scored nearly 10000 runs and picked nearly 500 wickets in the T20 global leagues around the world. Russell was KKR's Most Valuable Player over many seasons in the IPL back in IPL 2015 and 2019 as well.
Andre Russell's release from the Kolkata Knight Riders led to the inclusion of a massive amount of money in the KKR purse. The player was retained for a whopping amount of INR 12 crores. His release has led to the addition of a whopping INR 18 crores to the purse since he was a first-category retention in the KKR team.
CSK-KKR back-door talks revealed
The Chennai Super Kings were already amid controversy for having parted ways with veteran all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja. The all-rounder's 12-year-long stay with CSK came to an end when he was traded to the Rajasthan Royals.
CSK, on the other hand, released Matheesha Pathirana, the pace bowler who was a true talent in the Men in Yellow camp. He evolved as a fine speedster and a unique talent with the white ball towards the death overs.
According to a RevSportz reporter, Rohit Juglan, Andre Russell decided to part ways with KKR, and soon after coming to know he was being traded, and CSK reportedly approached him through the back door, as a result of which they released their speedster Matheesha Pathirana.
🚨 According to Rohit Juglan — Andre Russell decided to part ways with KKR after learning the franchise wanted to trade him. Soon after, CSK reportedly approached him through back-door talks, and releasing Pathirana was a strategic move to target Russell in the auction 👀#IPL pic.twitter.com/mIqv8ikB5i
— 𝔸𝕁𝔸𝕐 𝕁𝔸ℕ𝔾𝕀𝔻 (@iamajayjangirr) November 15, 2025
Which teams would be likely to target Andre Russell in the mini-auction
The veteran all-rounder from KKR will, for the first time, appear in the mini-auction, as he has been released ahead of the mini-auction. He will be targeted by several franchises who are in the quest for a big-hitter all-rounder.
Andre Russell can be an asset to teams like the Rajasthan Royals, who needed to finish the innings better, which led them to losses last season. On the other hand, CSK also needed some big-hitting stars towards the back end of the innings.
Lastly, the Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, and Lucknow Super Giants also looked like perfect franchises to acquire his services. The need for an all-rounder, especially with a hitting arc like that of Russell, seems to be very impressive for all franchises.
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