IPL trade: RR, DC close to Sanju Samson, Tristan Stubbs swap; KKR press for KL Rahul | EXCLUSIVE | Cricket News

With Sanju Samson clear on leaving the Rajasthan unit, both DC and RR have been locked in negotiations and many tradable options were discussed along the way. (BCCI Photo)

NEW DELHI: Sanju Samson and Tristan Stubbs are likely to be involved in the first big trade before the IPL auction later this year as both Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Delhi Capitals (DC) are getting close to finalising the deal. With Samson clear on leaving the Rajasthan unit, both DC and RR have been locked in negotiations and many tradable options were discussed along the way. It is reliably learnt that DC are keen to have Samson on board but were not willing to trade any of their core players.Even KL Rahul’s name came up for discussions for the swap but DC were reluctant to let go of the player who had been their key performer last season with the bat, and also brings a lot of brand value to the table. RR are happy with the idea of having Stubbs in their camp but it’s understood that they asked for another uncapped player along with the South African. That, however, wasn’t entertained by the DC unit and there is a bright possibility of seeing Samson back in DC colours from next season of the Indian Premier League.In the last few months, RR have had discussions with other franchises too regarding Samson and TimesofIndia.com can confirm an approach to Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for Ravindra Jadeja. RR wanted to swap Samson for Jadeja but the talks didn’t materialise after the initial interest. At this stage, Samson to DC and Stubbs to RR looks a strong possibility if there are no late hiccups from the two parties.KKR want KL Rahul but for who?Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), meanwhile, continue to press for KL Rahul as they are desperate to have a captain and top-order bat in their ranks. The camaraderie between new head coach Abhishek Nayar and Rahul is not a secret, and even the top management of the franchise is eager to have him on board. The big question, however, remains who they trade him for? As of now, KKR don’t seem to have a tradable asset which would excite the DC unit. There are strong murmurs of Andre Russell’s name as an option but DC want to invest in youth and players they can bank on in the next few years. The only tradable assets in the squad are Rinku Singh and Varun Chakravarthy, and it seems unlikely that they will let go of them.Venkatesh Iyer’s poor last season is unlikely to attract any serious takers and the all-rounder could well find himself back in the auction pool. KKR are one of the franchises which is likely to go hard for Cameron Green and releasing Iyer gives them the purse to do that. The KL Rahul situation continues to be delicately placed and if the DC-RR swap materialises, KKR could well pursue it with more intent.