New Delhi: Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have picked Ayush Mhatre as injury replacement for skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad, who has been ruled out of IPL 2025 due to an elbow fracture. On the other hand, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) have signed Smaran Ravichandran as a replacement for injured Australia leg-spinner Adam Zampa.
Mhatre, who plays for Mumbai in domestic cricket, has played nine first-class matches and seven List A games, amassing 962 runs from the same. The 17-year-old right-handed batter, who broke Yashasvi Jaiswal’s record for the youngest batter to smash a 150-plus score in List A cricket last year, joins CSK for INR 30 lakh.
Hailing from Virar, a suburb situated away from Mumbai, Mhatre, who is yet to play a game of competitive T20 cricket, also made 176 runs in three matches for India in the 2024/25 Men’s U19 Asia Cup in the UAE and has recently attended the mid-season trials with CSK.
CSK is currently playing its seventh game against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Stadium Monday night. The side, now being captained by MS Dhoni, will play against Hardik Pandya-led Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium April 20.
On the other hand, Ravichandran, SRH’s newest Bengaluru-based signing, comes on the back of playing seven first-class games, 10 List A matches & six T20s, amassing over 1100 runs from these matches.
The 21-year-old left-handed batter, who plays for Karnataka in domestic cricket and made 516 runs in the side’s triumphant Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) campaign earlier this year, joins SRH for INR 30 lakh. SRH, ranked ninth in the points table, will next face seventh-placed Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium Thursday.
