Santiago Alvarez, the Argentinian rugby sevens star who captained Argentina at the Paris 2024 Olympics, has been named captain of the Rugby Premier League (RPL) defending champions Chennai Bulls for the upcoming season. Indian international Mohit Khatri has been appointed vice-captain of the men's side, while Chantelle Miell — who has captained Great Britain on the World Rugby SVNS series — will lead the Bulls' women's team, with Savannah Bauder as her deputy.

Title Defence Begins on 16 June

The Chennai Bulls men's team opens their title defence on 16 June against Delhi Redz at the Gachibowli Stadium in Hyderabad. The women's side will also face Delhi Redz in what will be the first-ever women's match in the history of the RPL, marking the inaugural season of the women's league.

Leadership Unit Brings Olympic and International Pedigree

The captaincy choices signal clear intent from the franchise. Alvarez led Argentina's sevens programme at the Paris 2024 Olympics, while Khatri has captained India at the international level for several years. On the women's side, Miell brings SVNS circuit experience having skippered Great Britain, and Bauder adds further international depth as vice-captain.

'Leading the Chennai Bulls this season is a matter of pride, and I'm hoping we can defend our title from Season 1. Leading a side as diverse as the Bulls is an exciting challenge, and I'm happy to have Mohit Khatri by my side as vice-captain. The Chennai Bulls have always stood for high standards on the field, and that's something we'll strive for in every game,' said Alvarez.

Khatri added: 'Being chosen as Vice-Captain is just testament to the faith that the franchise has shown in me and I look forward to playing alongside these legends of the game.'

Miell said: 'The introduction of the women's squads in the Rugby Premier League is a huge step forward for rugby sevens. Kudos to Chennai Bulls for making sure they are part of the women's rugby movement... Being named captain of this squad is very special, and I look forward to working alongside Coach Amy Turner to shape this team into the best version of itself on the field.'

Bauder described herself as 'extremely excited,' noting that the squad 'consists of some of the biggest names from both international rugby as well as the Indian rugby ecosystem.'

Squads and Coaching Staff

The men's squad includes Kaminieli Rasaku, Ratu Filipe Sauturaga, Ratu Marika Koroibeti, Michael Icely, Taualai Panoa, Tusitafu Toilolo, Marcus Kershaw, Hidayat Jeffrydin, Harpreet Singh Kamboj, Pranav Patil, Jugal Majhi, and Karan Rajbhar, coached by Ben Gollings. The women's squad features Adia Pye, Carmen Izyk, Larah Wright, Sheilla Chajira, Sandhyarani Tudu, Amandeep Kaur, Sandhya Rai, Muskan Piploda, Sapna Kumari, and Priyanka R, under coach Amy Turner.

Chennai Bulls' Growing Global Footprint

The 2025–26 season was already historic for the franchise — the Bulls became the first Indian representative side to participate in the Fiji Coral Coast 7s and the Hong Kong 10s. Owned by AVID Sports and supported by AVID Health, Remsafe, and Priority Pass, the franchise has positioned itself as a standard-bearer for rugby's growth in India and beyond. With two competitive squads in both the men's and women's RPL, the Bulls are among the few franchises fielding teams across both leagues this season.