New Delhi: Will Virat Kohli lead Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) once again in the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025? Multiple reports have suggested that Kohli has already given his nod to the RCB team management to take over captaincy next season. However, RCB COO Rajesh Menon remained tight-lipped on who will be leading the franchise in IPL 2025.
Menon stated that a decision had not been taken yet on who will lead the team next season while stating that RCB have several experienced candidates to take over the reins. Kohli led RCB from 2013 to 2021 before stepping down as captain ahead of the IPL 2022 season. He was replaced by Faf du Plessis as captain and the team did well under the veteran South Africa batter, making it to the playoffs twice in three seasons.
However, they failed to bring an end to their long-standing title drought. Du Plessis was not retained by the franchise ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction last year and RCB didn’t go for an outright captaincy candidate to replace him at the auction. Kohli appears to be the strongest contender to lead the side heading into IPL 2025 and might return as captain next season.
However, Menon said it would be too early to say that and that a decision is expected to be taken soon by the RCB management. “Too early (to talk about it). There are different experienced people in the mix. So, we need to evaluate and come to a conclusion. It won’t be long before we come to that conclusion,” the RCB COO was quoted as saying by India Today.
Kohli had cited workload issues while stepping down from RCB captaincy in 2021. The move came right after he stepped down as India’s captain across formats. However, having retired from T20Is last year, Kohli might consider returning as captain of the franchise next season. The leading run-getter in IPL history, Kohli has been with RCB since the inaugural edition in 2008.
However, he is yet to win his maiden IPL title with the franchise. Under Kohli’s captaincy, RCB made it to their second final in IPL 2016 but lost against Sunrisers Hyderabad to miss out on the trophy. It remains to be seen if the Team India star will return as captain in a final attempt to win his maiden IPL trophy as captain next season.
Who did RCB spend big on at IPL 2025 mega auction?
RCB had a quiet day on Day 1 of the IPL 2025 mega auction in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia but made some smart buys on the last day of the event. They spent big on the likes of Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood, England star Phil Salt, veteran Indian pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Australian all-rounder Tim David among others at the auction.
Hazlewood was RCB’s top buy for Rs 12.5 crore while Salt was bought for Rs 11.5 crore. RCB spent big on Indian wicket-keeper batter Jitesh Sharma, acquiring him for Rs 11 crore while Bhuvneshwar was roped in for Rs 10.75 crore. RCB also bought the likes of Krunal Pandya and Liam Livingstone to further strengthen their squad ahead of IPL 2025.
Virat Kohli is the strongest contender to lead the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the upcoming IPL 2025 after the franchise decided to not go for an outright captaincy candidate in the mega auction last year. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
