Australian batting all-rounder Glenn Maxwell has opened up on not being retained by the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction.
On the deadline day (October 31), RCB retained Virat Kohli for a whopping price of INR 21 crore. Rajat Patidar (INR 11 crore) and Yash Dayal (INR 5 crore) were the other two players retained by the Bengaluru-based franchise, leaving them with three Right to Match (RTM) cards and a budget of INR 83 crore for the grand auction.
Among the big names not retained by RCB was Maxwell, who was associated with the team since 2021. Nearly a week after the retention list was released, the Aussie cricketer revealed how the franchise conveyed the message to him and he was impressed with their handling of the situation.
“I got a phone call from Mo Bobat and Andy Flower. I sat there on a zoom call, and they sort of explained to me the decision not to be retained. And, it was actually a really beautiful exit meeting, if that if that could be possible. We ended up talking about the game for about half an hour and talking about their strategy and what they were looking to get to do, going forward. So, I was really happy with that,” said Maxwell on ESPNCricinfo’s Around the wicket show.
“They were obviously changing a few of their staff as well. So they needed to get that sorted before they started talking to players. And I understood that process was going to take a bit of time. And, but yeah, you're always sort of getting a little bit edgy around that, that last date about whether you're gonna be retained and not so sure what's gonna happen. But, completely understand what they the direction they're heading in. They went, with three unions to build that core. And, yeah, hopefully their overseas can complement, those locals. Yeah I wouldn't say my RCB journey's over, but, yeah, I'd certainly love to get back there. It was a great franchise to play for and really enjoyed my time there,” he added.
Glenn Maxwell was signed by RCB ahead of the IPL 2021 for a hefty sum of INR 14.25 crores. He lived up to the expectations in his very first season, amassing 513 runs in 15 matches with six half-centuries.
Maxwell was retained for the next season. Although his performance took a dip in 2022, scoring 301 runs in 13 games with a solitary fifty, he bounced back to score 400 runs in 14 matches last year.
However, Maxwell failed to do justice to his exceptional ability in 2024 as he managed to score only 52 runs in 10 games.
Widely regarded as one of the best T20 cricketers, Glenn Maxwell is set to attract huge bids in the upcoming mega auction and with RCB having a huge purse amount, they could well break the bank to retain his services.
