IPL 2025 mega auction: Rahul Tripathi to unite with MS Dhoni as CSK buy India star for 3.4 crores

Rahul Tripathi scored 165 runs in IPL 2024 for SRH.

Batting with high intent and fearlessness is the selling point of Rahul Tripathi. The Maharashtra cricketer who now plays domestic cricket for Goa has played five T20Is for India.

His averages of 32, 35 and 26 in first-class, List A and T20 cricket don’t stand out; he has lacked consistency in his career but his role in any team he’s played for has been that of a momentum-changer or a game-changer, as in modern cricket’s parlance.

What has also been a challenge for him is that his batting position has not remained fixed and he’s been shuffled quite a bit from the opening spot to No. 3 and even to No. 4.

A couple of exceptional Indian Premier League (IPL) seasons in 2021 led to a debut in T20Is in 2023. He scored 97 runs across five innings at a strike rate of 144. This included a couple of blistering knocks of 44 (22) and 35 (16), while his other three scores were all less than 15, a function of the ultra-aggressive batting method he plays with.

Rahul Tripathi sold to CSK for INR 3.4 crore

Chennai Super Kings roped in Rahul Tripathi for INR 3.4 crore in the mega auction. CSK and KKR were the only two teams who bid for Tripathi and the five-time champions managed to purchase him. Tripathi will reunite with MS Dhoni, with whom he played for Rising Pune Supergiant in 2017.

Rahul Tripathi previously in IPL

Tripathi made his IPL debut in 2017 for Rising Pune Supergiant. As an opener, his 391 runs in the season were crucial in Pune’s run to the final. He was then bought by Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the IPL 2018 mega auction but with RR using him in the middle-order, Tripathi couldn’t do a lot and was released.

He spent a couple of seasons then at Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) where he turned into a middle-order spin basher and his 397 runs in IPL 2021 helped KKR finish as runners-up.

In the IPL 2022 mega auction, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) splashed INR 8.5 crore for Tripathi. He had a terrific IPL 2022 season, where he scored 413 runs at a strike rate of 158 and bossed at the No. 3 slot. That landed him a T20I debut for India.

For more updates, follow Khel Now Cricket on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Whatsapp & Telegram.