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Indian Premier League franchises have submitted their retention list before the mega auction which is set to take place next month and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have not retained their former skipper Faf du Plessis for the upcoming season of the tournament. There were rumours that Virat Kohli who left his captaincy after 2021 will lead the franchise once again in the upcoming edition.
However, RCB's director of cricket Mo Bobat said that no decision has been made about the captaincy for the franchise in the upcoming season.
RCB have retained Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, and Yash Dayal ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction to be held this year.
Speaking in a video after the retention announcement, Bobat ruled out that Virat has been finalised as a captain.
"I am sorry to disappoint everybody listening. We have not made any decision related to captaincy or on that (Kohli returning as skipper) as yet. We are open to options. The only obvious decision we made was not to retain Faf. He did a great job last year and the year before that. So from our perspective, we will keep a very open mind when we head to the auction," said Bobat in a video posted by RCB.
Under Faf du Plessis's leadership since 2022, RCB reached the playoffs in two of the three seasons, including this year. This season's journey to the playoffs was particularly noteworthy, as the team managed to turn things around after winning only one match in the first half of the competition. They went on to win six consecutive matches, securing their spot in the final four.
He also revealed that not retaining pacer Mohammed Siraj, who has been in the core of the franchise since 2018, having taken 83 wickets in 87 matches, was the "toughest decision" given his strong performances for RCB and India over the years. He had taken 15 wickets in 14 matches last season.
"Regarding Mohammed Siraj, not retaining him was our toughest decision. We value his contributions, having been a strong performer for RCB and India over the years. However, we wanted to enter the auction with as many options open as possible, especially to build a balanced bowling attack capable of competing effectively in the IPL and other formats," Bobat said.
In IPL 2024, RCB narrowly secured a place in the top four, winning seven of their 14 matches and finishing fourth with 14 points. However, their journey in the 17th season ended after a four-wicket loss to Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the playoffs.
