Main point:
RCB cricket director Mo Bobat revealed that Mohammad Siraj had to be released to include Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the team. Siraj later joined the Gujarat Titans. Virat Kohli supported the decision to make Rajat Patidar a captain and the team won the IPL title for the first time.
Delhi: Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) cricket director Mo Bobat has spoken openly about the decision not to retain Mohammad Siraj. Siraj was an important player of the Bengaluru team since 2017, but was released before the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 mega auction. In his place, the franchise included Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the team.
Why did RCB release Siraj?
Choosing Bhuvneshwar Kumar proved to be a masterstroke for RCB. He took 17 wickets in 14 matches in the tournament and played an important role in winning the IPL title for the first time. Mo Bobat said that in all retention decisions, there was the most discussed about Siraj. He said, “We wanted to take Bhuvneshwar Kumar and we felt that if we had retained Siraj, Bhuvi would have been difficult to take.”
RCB bought Bhubaneswar for Rs 10.75 crore. At the same time, Siraj was bought by Gujarat Titans for 12.25 crores. Siraj also performed brilliantly and took 16 wickets in 15 matches. His best bowling figure was 4/17.
Prior to the mega auction, RCB also released Faf du Plessis. After this, the team made Rajat Patidar the new captain. Mo Bobat said that Virat Kohli gave full support regarding this decision.
RCB won the IPL 2025 title under the captaincy of Rajat Patidar. The team defeated Punjab Kings in the final and won the trophy for the first time after 18 years.
