R Ashwin has named his top four teams for IPL 2026, and surprisingly, his former franchise Chennai Super Kings did not make the cut. The recently retired India spinner picked Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Punjab Kings, and Rajasthan Royals as his playoff contenders.

Mumbai Indians as Ashwin’s top pick

Ashwin selected five-time champions Mumbai Indians as his first choice for the IPL 2026 playoffs. The Hardik Pandya-led side retained their core group after last month’s retention window and made smart trades to bring in Sherfane Rutherford (from Gujarat Titans), Mayank Markande (from Kolkata Knight Riders), and Shardul Thakur (from Lucknow Super Giants).

During the IPL 2026 mini-auction on December 16 in Abu Dhabi, MI signed Quinton de Kock for just ₹1 crore, along with budget buys like Danish Malewar (₹30 lakh), Mohammed Izhar (₹30 lakh), Atharva Ankolekar (₹30 lakh), and Mayank Rawat (₹30 lakh). Despite having the smallest purse of any team at ₹2.75 crore, MI managed to strengthen an already strong squad.

Ashwin praised MI’s signing of De Kock, saying the franchise capitalised while other teams hesitated. He believes MI are trying to recreate their IPL 2020 title-winning combination, though Ishan Kishan is no longer part of the squad. “I think the Quinton de Kock buy was a good move. I think the other franchises were sleeping on their haunches, and MI snooped it up,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.

He added: “MI had 2.75 crore, but it was as if they had 27 crore, because they bought so many players. MI already had a winning squad before they went into the IPL auction, and now, after the auction, they look even stronger.”

Defending champions RCB as second pick

Ashwin went with defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru as his second pick. RCB, who lifted their first IPL title earlier in 2025, retained their core group of players and made eight signings during the auction. The most notable additions were Venkatesh Iyer for ₹4 crore and New Zealand pacer Jacob Duffy for ₹2 crore.

RCB have a settled playing XI with Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Phil Salt, and a strong bowling attack led by Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Ashwin’s pick of RCB as a top-four team makes sense given their status as reigning champions and the quality additions they made at the auction.

PBKS and RR round out Ashwin’s top four

For the remaining two playoff spots, Ashwin picked his former teams Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals. PBKS, who have Shreyas Iyer as captain and a strong core including Arshdeep Singh and Yuzvendra Chahal, made smart additions in the auction but have limited overseas slots remaining.

Rajasthan Royals, led by Yashasvi Jaiswal and featuring Sanju Samson (traded from CSK), Ravindra Jadeja (traded from CSK), and Sam Curran (traded from CSK), have built a strong squad. RR were the only team among Ashwin’s top four that did not reach the playoffs in IPL 2025. The other three—MI, RCB, and PBKS—all made the playoffs last season.

CSK and other former champions snubbed

Ashwin’s picks notably excluded Chennai Super Kings, the franchise he played for during some of the most successful years of his IPL career. CSK had the second-highest purse at the auction (₹43.40 crore) and made several signings, including adding Sanju Samson via trade. However, the loss of key all-rounders like Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran, along with their fifth-place finish in IPL 2025, may have influenced Ashwin’s decision.

Other former champions like Kolkata Knight Riders (who had the biggest purse at ₹64.30 crore) and Sunrisers Hyderabad were also left out of Ashwin’s top four. Ashwin made his predictions during an interaction on Mumbai Indians’ Instagram handle, where he explained his reasoning for each pick.