RCB are also seeking a captain who can serve them for a long time.
Ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season, all teams are set to undergo a major overhaul as the mega auction will be held next month.
The BCCI recently rolled out the retention guidelines, and now the ball is in the team’s court to make the tricky decisions. Each of the 10 IPL franchises can retain up to six cricketers, through the retention and Right To Match (RTM) option.
October 31 is the deadline for retentions ahead of the upcoming mega-auction. Meanwhile, a report published in TOI has claimed that the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will surely retain star batter Virat Kohli but they are in a tight spot regarding other retentions.
Mohammed Siraj has been the spearhead of the pace attack but conceded runs at 9+ an over in two of the last three editions. Glenn Maxwell had a dismal IPL 2024 campaign and current skipper Faf Du Plessis is already 40.
Cameron Green is unlikely to feature in the retention list as well since the Australian all-rounder recently underwent back surgery and will be out of action for at least six months.
Only Rajat Patidar emerges as an option but it's unlikely RCB would want to spend a lot of money on the middle-order batter.
According to the report, RCB have no option but to press the reset button and fill the vacant positions at the grand auction. Considering Faf’s age, the Bengaluru-based franchise certainly needs a captain who can serve them for a long time.
The report also suggested that there is considerable government pressure on RCB to go local for this cycle and it will not be a surprise if they sign Karnataka players during the mega auction.
In this regard, KL Rahul perfectly fits the bill as he can fill the role of a top-order batter and is also a local player who has the leadership experience as well. The RCB stakeholders will reportedly keep a close tab on developments in the LSG camp.
Notably, Rahul played for RCB from 2013-2016 and had a brilliant season in 2016 where he amassed 397 runs at a strike-rate of 146.49. He can also keep wickets and after the retirement of Dinesh Karthik, RCB are in need of a reliable glovesman as well.
However, RCB's hands are tied at the moment with LSG yet to take a call on KL Rahul. If the Lucknow-based franchise decides to release Rahul, the auction is likely to witness an intense bidding war for the 32-year-old.
(With TOI Inputs)