The IPL Champions for 2025 RCB have one of the easiest retentions this year. They do not have to release a lot of players but they have to be strategic. 2026 can be a very challenging year for them as the Chinnaswamy Stadium may not get the permission to host IPL Matches. They have to plan accordingly. They will look for specific players going into the mini auction.
Let’s look at the Retained and Released Players by Royal Challengers Bengaluru ahead of the IPL 2026 mini auction
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) Released Players ahead of IPL 2026 Auction
Liam Livingstone – 8.75 Cr
Lungi Ngidi – 1 Cr
Swastik Chhikara
Tim Seifert
Manoj Bhandage
Mohit Rathee
Mayank Agarwal
As seen above, RCB do not need to release a lot of players this year. They only released these 7 players. Out of these, Liam Livingstone was someone that the team had very high hopes for and he was not able to deliver for the team. Lungi Ngidi was not used much by the team and he will be released.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) Retention List for IPL 2026
Rajat Patidar
Virat Kohli
Phil Salt*
Jitesh Sharma
Krunal Pandya
Swapnil Singh
Tim David*
Romario Shepherd*
Josh Hazlewood*
Suyash sharma
Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Yash Dayal
Nuwan Thushara
Abhinandan Singh
Rasikh Salam
Jacob Bethell*
Devdutt Padikkal
The list of Retained Players by RCB is the core that made them champions last year. They will keep their strong Indian core such as Rajat Patidar, Virat Kohli, Yash Dayal, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Krunal Pandya who were instrumental in them winning the title. Josh Hazlewood, Tim David, Phil Salt are the key overseas players for them and they will be with RCB for years to come. Jitesh Sharma has become the Finisher they need to close the Innings and he is also one of the best wicket Keepers. RCB need backups for Josh Hazlewood, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Yash Dayal. They have left with the purse of 16.4 Cr for upcoming mini Auction.
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