New Delhi: KL Rahul will enter the Indian Premier League (IPL) mega-auction as one of the hot prospects. The Karnataka batter was released from the Lucknow Super Giants into the auction pool after an eventful IPL 2024 edition.
The LSG skipper and team owner Sanjiv Goenka were involved in a heated exchange during the 2024 edition after Sunrisers Hyderabad battered the Lucknow bowlers to chase down a target of 166 in just 9.4 overs. The incident was seen as a last straw for both Rahul and Goenka and even though both tried to reconcile it was not enough for both parties to stay together in the 2025 edition.
Rahul, after being released, is likely to fetch big bucks in the upcoming auction. Despite his recent run of poor form, Rahul is regarded as one of the most talented batters in the country, who, on his day, is capable of smashing any bowling attack.
Ahead of the mega-auction, rumours are rife of Rahul’s return to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), a franchise he has represented before twice. Rahul began his IPL journey at RCB in 2013 and returned to the franchise in 2016, following a two-year stint atuSunrisers Hyderabad. It was that RCB had reached the final.
The rumours of Rahul’s return to the Bengaluru franchise were fuelled further when RCB dropped a teaser when he was spotted batting alongside Virat Kohli at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium ahead of the opening Test of the three-match series against New Zealand.
Rahul breaks silence on RCB move
Now in an exclusive chat with Star Sports, Rahul revelead that while RCB would be his preferred destination, he is ready for anything at the unpredicatble IPL auction.
“Of course (Would you like to be back at RCB?) Bengaluru is home. People there know me as a local Kannada boy. Would be nice to go back there and get an opportunity. But, yeah, it’s an auction year, you can go anywhere,” he told Star Sports, the official broadcaster of IPL.
Rahul’s home comfort
After making his IPL debut for RCB in 2013, Rahul reunited with the franchise in 2016 and finished the season as the team’s third-highest run-getter with 397 runs from 14 matches. Not just with bat, Rahul excelled behind the stumps as well and showed his credentials as a wicket-keeper.
In the three yers he spent at RCB, Rahul was the top run-getter for the franchise with an average of 37.90. Besides RCB, Rahul has also played for SRH, Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings), and LSG.
The IPL mega-auction is scheduled to be held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on November 24 and 25. It marquee event will be held abroad for the second successive year. The 2024 auction was held in Dubai.
The mega-auction will clash with Day 3 and Day 4 of the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy between India and Australia at the Optus Stadium in Perth. KL Rahul: Ahead of the IPL mega-auction, rumours are rife of Karnataka batter’s return to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), a franchise he has represented before twice Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
