Former wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist has made a rather bold prediction for the upcoming 18th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), and it will certainly not please the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) fans.

Gilchrist believes the Virat Kohli-starrer franchise will finish at the bottom of the points table. The IPL 2025 is scheduled to kick-off on Saturday (March 22), with the opening fixture between defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and RCB at the iconic Eden Gardens.

Speaking on the Club Prairie Fire Podcast, Gilchrist said RCB will come last this year. While the Australian legend did clarify that he has nothing "against" RCB and Kohli fans, he quipped that there are just too many "Englishmen" in their squad.

For the unversed, RCB had signed the likes of Liam Livingstone, Jacob Bethell and Phil Salt at the mega auction last November.

"I think there's a fair chance it might be because I'm basing it on the fact that there's just too many Englishmen in the squad. So, RCB. On the back of having too many Englishmen in there," Gilchrist stated.

"Nothing against Virat, nothing against their fans. I apologise to the fans, but you've got to talk to your recruiting agents," he added.

Rajat Patidar will lead RCB in IPL 2025. The franchise also have Josh Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Krunal Pandya, Tim David, Romario Shepherd among other notable names in their ranks.

RCB squad: Rajat Patidar (c), Virat Kohli, Yash Dayal, Josh Hazlewood, Phil Salt, Jitesh Sharma, Liam Livingstone, Rasikh Dar, Suyash Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Swapnil Singh, Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Nuwan Thushara, Manoj Bhandage, Jacob Bethel, Devdutt Padikkal, Swastik Chhikara, Lungi Ngidi, Abhinandan Singh, Mohit Rathee.