Not KL Rahul Or Rishabh Pant! RCB Reveal Two Indian Stars As Major Targets They Failed To Sign At IPL Auction
RCB revealed two major targets they missed out on signing at the IPL mega auction |Courtesy-BCCI/IPL
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
RCB revealed two major stars they failed to sign
RCB did not bid heavily for KL Rahul or Rishabh Pant
RCB went into the auction with the second biggest purse
The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) entered the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) mega aution with the second biggest purse in the room with Rs. 83 crore in the bank after they retained just three players (one uncapped) in Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, and Yash Dayal.
The Bengaluru-based franchise were widely expected to big bid for local boy KL Rahul and star Indian wicket-keeper batter Rishabh Pant. Many also expected them to use the Right to Match (RTM) card to re-sign Mohammed Siraj, Glenn Maxwell, Faf du Plessis,and Will Jacks.
However,RCB signed none of these six players in the auction and refrained from bidding for their former players. Despite having three RTM Cards in their kitty, the three-time runners-up only used one which was to sign uncapped all-rounder Swapnil Singh.
While RCB did bid for both Pant and KL Rahul, they stopped raising their paddle after Rs. 11 crore and Rs. 10.5 crore for both players. In a four-part docu-series released on the franchises' official social media channels, the Bengaluru-based outfit gave an insight into their auction planning and revealed two priority targets they missed out on signing.
The franchise gave a background on their decision to target the players they signed like Phil Salt, Josh Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jitesh Sharma, Krunal Pandya, and Liam Livingstone, they conceded that while getting most of their top choices they missed out on two priority choices namely Yuzvendra Chahal and Venkatesh Iyer. Both also featured on RCB's targetted playing 12 with no back-up choices assigned.
RCB Venkatesh Chahal
RCB targets
RCB bid at Chahal at Rs.14.25 crore but he was sold to Punjab Kings (PBKS) for Rs. 18 crore. The bidding for Venkatesh left the cricketing world stunned as Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) re-signed him for Rs. 23.75 crore with RCB bidding till Rs. 23.50 crore.
RCB are yet to name a captain for the 2025 season following Faf du Plessis' departure. The franchise did not target a captain on the auction table sparking speculation that Virat Kohli could return to the top job.
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