Jeddah, Nov 25 (IANS): Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) Director of Cricket, Mo Bobat, shared the strategy behind the team’s calculated and bold approach in the IPL 2025 Auction in Jeddah on Monday. He emphasised that RCB focused on building a balanced and competitive squad and stayed clear of the unpredictable nature of the auction.
Securing explosive batters like Phil Salt (Rs 11.5 cr), Liam Livingstone (Rs 8.75 cr), and Tim David (Rs 3 cr) headlined RCB's approach, bringing aggression to the top and middle order and aligning with the ‘bold brand of cricket.’ RCB also created a tantalising bowling unit by bringing back Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood (Rs 12.5 cr), who is well-versed in the Chinnaswamy track, and partnering him with the Indian King of Swing Bhuvneshwar Kumar (Rs 10.75 cr).
“Let’s be honest - RCB has never won the IPL. In the past, we’ve focused on spending big on a small number of players. This year, we approached it differently, aiming to assemble a balanced team rather than disproportionately spending on top-order batters as we may have done before. Jitesh Sharma is a high-quality Indian player who adds real power down the order- someone who might be able to replicate some of DK's finishing,” explained Mo Bobat.
Choosing not to participate in the initial stage of the auction and focusing only on players they truly wanted was a deliberate and bold strategy by the team management. Each of the successful bids addressed key roles and added diversity to the team, aligning with the broader goals for the upcoming season and beyond.
Indian wicketkeeper-batter Jitesh Sharma (Rs 11 cr) added a finishing strength to the lower order, creating a formidable batting lineup while the addition of the experienced Krunal Pandya (Rs 5.75 cr) and West Indian Romario Shepherd (Rs 1.50 cr) provided steel to both the batting and the bowling departments.
“It was really great to get Bhuvi today, that level of skill, along with Krunal's level of skill, will complement Hazlewood coming back to RCB. It'd be great to have him back at back at the club. Yash Dayal, we saw what he did last year and we've got a Rasikh salam, vying for a place as well. So that sort of skill, I think, is a skill in the bowling department is what you need at Chinnaswamy. So, to have that level of skill, secured is a good feeling for us. Well, we got a lot of our first options, actually. So, we're really happy with where we stand at the moment. said the RCB head coach Andy Flower.
The buying strategy also reflected a strong trust in result-oriented uncapped players, addressing the needs of the bold outfits that the management is aiming to create. The buys of Suyash Sharma (Rs 2.2 cr) and Rasikh Dar (Rs 6 cr) outline that mindset. The team objective was to build a strong Indian bowling core effective from the start to the end alongside Yash Dayal; Rasikh, who emerged as a particularly economical prospect in IPL 2024, and Suyash, whose spin bowling bamboozled many a batter, formed part of that objective.
“So, unfortunately, we bailed out and couldn’t deliver Yuzi (Chahal) back to the fans, but we’re very happy with what we’ve seen with Suyash Sharma. He’s a high-quality leg-spinner who bowls aggressively, and we think he can add value,” Bobat explained.