India veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin who was picked by Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) mega auction for 2025 lavished praise on Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) strategy which picked the players in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The Bengaluru-based franchise has released its old players likes as Faf du Plessis, Mohammed Siraj, Glenn Maxwell and fans were shocked when they denied using RTM 'Right to Match' for these star players during the mega auction. However, Ashwin thinks something else, the veteran spinner reckons that they had a great auction and they had clarity on what to pick to make a balanced side for the upcoming season.
“I actually personally think they (RCB) had a terrific auction. They balanced it and waited it out. Many teams came into this auction with many crores in their purses. They came blazing right in the front but RCB played the waiting game even though they had a lot of money. Who do I need? They are the ones I need. My overall team is important. My 12 or 14 is important,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
“What will work in our conditions? I want that sort of a side. I need that team. Even though I have RTMs, I am not going to use them. I will end up picking who I want. I will follow the strategy till the end,” he added.
RCB released their captain Faf du Plessis and they have not yet announced their leader for the upcoming season of the cash-rich league. There are speculations that the franchise will choose their captain from Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jitesh Sharma as they brought them for a whopping 5.75 crores, 10.75 crores and 11 crore respectively.
However, Ashwin reckons that Virat Kohli will lead the side again in the upcoming season which is scheduled to start from March 14.
“In all likelihood, I think Virat Kohli is going to captain that side. That's the feeling I get because they haven't gone for a captain. Unless and until they are going to go with somebody else. I don't see anyone other than Virat as captain,” Ashwin said in a video posted on his official YouTube handle.
The Bengaluru-based franchise has played three finals, losing all (in 2009 to the Deccan Chargers, in 2011 to the Chennai Super Kings and in 2016 to the Sunrisers Hyderabad). The team also finished runners-up in the 2011 CLT20, losing the final against the Mumbai Indians.
