Gujarat Titans refuse to trade Washington Sundar, turn down Chennai Super Kings offer for all-rounder
Gujarat Titans (GT) have reportedly declined an offer from Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to trade India all-rounder Washington Sundar ahead of the IPL 2026 auction.
Gujarat Titans (GT) have reportedly turned down an approach from Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for Indian all-rounder Washington Sundar ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 auction. November 15 is the deadline for all ten teams to announce their final list of retained and released players ahead of the mini-auction next month.
Ahead of the deadline, there has been significant buzz about possible trade deals between franchises involving some big names. Chennai Super Kings are reportedly close to completing a swap deal with Rajasthan Royals (RR) for Indian wicket-keeper batter Sanju Samson. The trade deal might involve CSK great Ravindra Jadeja and another player, who will head to RR, with Samson joining the Men in Yellow.
As per a report in the Indian Express, CSK also made an approach for Sundar. The five-time champions made an offer to the Gujarat Titans for the Indian all-rounder, however, it was declined by the 2022 champions. With R Ashwin retired and Jadeja likely to join RR in the trade deal involving Samson, CSK want to bring in Sundar as a replacement.
However, their pursuit of the all-rounder has met a dead end. As per the report, the Gujarat Titans expect Sundar to play a vital role going forward and have thus declined CSK's approach for the all-rounder.
Spin has been central to CSK's success over the years, and the franchise has always invested heavily in good Indian spinners. However, Ashwin's retirement and Jadeja's potential exit leave them thin on the spin front as there are no established Indian spinners in the current squad, barring Shreyas Gopal, who is a back-up option.
Lack of game time for Washington Sundar at GT
Gujarat Titans roped in Sundar for Rs 3.2 crore in the mega auction last year, however, the all-rounder played only six matches for the franchise in IPL 2025. Sundar, who has been a regular for India in Tests and T20Is under current head coach Gautam Gambhir, scored 133 runs and picked up two wickets in the six matches he played for GT last season.
It was a similar story for him at his former franchise, Sunrisers Hyderabad, as the introduction of the Impact Player rule has reduced the role of all-rounders in the leaders. However, Sundar's consistent performances for India across formats have helped his stature grow in recent times.
Sundar is a versatile spinner who can bowl across all phases in the game and has played under CSK head coach Stephen Fleming in the past at the now-defunct Rising Pune Supergiant, where he made his IPL debut. He is also a solid batter who can be utilised both in the top and the middle order and adds flexibility to the batting line-up.
It remains to be seen if CSK will return to the table for Sundar after GT rejected their approach for a trade deal, or if they will shift their focus elsewhere to rope in ideal replacements for Ashwin and Jadeja.