IPL 2025: Revealed - How Virat Kohli blocked RCB from acquiring KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant at auction

The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) signed 19 players during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 mega auction at the Abadi Al Johar Arena in Jeddah. However, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru didn't bid heavily for KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant for the captaincy during the two-day event in Saudi Arabia.

RCB's picks at the IPL 2025 auction sparked mixed reactions from fans, former cricketers, and cricket experts. The Bengaluru-based franchise entered with the second-highest purse of Rs 83 Crores, after retaining three players: Virat Kohli (Rs 21 Crore), Rajat Patidar (Rs 11 Crore), and Yash Dayal (Rs 5 Crore).

Josh Hazlewood RCB's Most Expensive Pick in IPL 2025 Auction

RCB started with Liam Livingstone (Rs 8.75 Crore). They secured Phil Salt (Rs 11.50 Crore) and Jitesh Sharma (Rs 11 Crore). The franchise's most expensive pick was Josh Hazlewood (Rs 12.5 Crore). However, the franchise surprised fans by not aggressively bidding for players like KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant.

The team showed interest in Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul but did not bid aggressively for them. They didn't cross Rs 11 crore and Rs 10.50 crore for Pant and Rahul, respectively. They also refrained from bidding for Shreyas Iyer, who was eventually picked by Punjab Kings (PBKS) for a whopping Rs 26.75 crore.

Virat Kohli Set To Lead RCB in IPL 2025 Season - Report

According to a report by Times of India, Virat Kohli is set to lead the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the upcoming season. The report further added that the franchise focused on strengthening the team rather than securing a captaincy option as Kohli was confirmed as skipper. This was the reason they didn't go after Pant and Rahul aggressively. They also didn't buy their former skipper Faf du Plessis.

Virat Kohli captained the Royal Challengers Bengaluru to 66 wins in 143 IPL matches. He guided the team to the playoffs four times. RCB finished as runners-up in IPL 2016, where they lost to SunRisers Hyderabad in a thrilling final. The 36-year-old cricketer stepped down as RCB captain after the 2021 season.

Ideal Match To Bring Back KL Rahul Into The Fold - Kris Srikkanth

Former Indian cricketer Kris Srikkanth expressed his surprise over Royal Challengers Bengaluru's strategy in the IPL 2025 auction. He felt the team needed a strong wicketkeeper-batter and that acquiring KL Rahul at a reasonable price would have been an ideal move.

"Rcb needed one really good keeper batter and it would have been an ideal match to bring back Rahul into the fold that to at a steal of a price ! The strategy they have currently is baffling and quite naive to be frank! #IPLAuction2025," Kris Srikkanth wrote.

Rcb needed one really good keeper batter and it would have been an ideal match to bring back Rahul into the fold that to at a steal of a price ! The strategy they have currently is baffling and quite naive to be frank! #IPLAuction2025

— Kris Srikkanth (@KrisSrikkanth) November 24, 2024

Retained Players: Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Yash Dayal

Auction Signings: Liam Livingstone (8.75 crore), Phil Salt (11.50 crore), Jitesh Sharma (11 crore), Josh Hazlewood (12.50 crore), Rasikh Dar (6 crore), Suyash Sharma (2.60 crore), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (10.75 crore), Krunal Pandya (5.75 crore), Swapnil Singh (50 lakh), Tim David (3 crore), Jacob Bethell (2.6 crore), Romario Shepherd (1.50 crore), Nuwan Thushara (1.60 crore), Devdutt Padikkal (2 crore), Swastik Chikara (30 lakh), Manoj Bhandage (30 lakh), Lungi Ngidi (1 crore), Abhinandan Singh (30 lakh), Mohit Rathee (30 lakh).

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