RCB have a purse of INR 16.40 crore for IPL 2026 auction.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have a settled core, and their releases on the deadline day indicated that not much will change next season. In total, they released six players, two of whom were overseas, and their purse will be INR 16.40 crore. Their batting, particularly, hardly requires any tweaks, and at best, they would need backups in this department.
RCB might want to find a suitable alternative for Liam Livingstone, who was their big-budget pick but failed to make an impact as a spin-bowling all-rounder. However, this will be a mini auction, where not many solid options will be available. There’s an obvious Glenn Maxwell, but RCB are unlikely to take a risk with him again after his recent failures.
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Currently, RCB have a set batting lineup: Virat Kohli, Phil Salt, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar, Jitesh Sharma, Tim David, Krunal Pandya, and Romario Shepherd, who are automatic picks. Then, they also have Jacob Bethell and Swapnil Singh as backups. So, RCB don’t need batters or even all-rounders at the moment.
However, there’s another way RCB can maximise this batting unit and avoid spending on someone like Livingstone to bat somewhere in the middle order. Recently, Tim David has started batting at No.4 and 5 for Australia and continued in the T10 League and aced the role. For Australia, he has played 10 innings at these two positions this year, scoring 395 runs at a strike rate of 197.50, with three fifties and a century.
However, David batted only once above the No.6 in IPL 2025, with as many as six innings at No.7 or below. Clearly, RCB didn’t entertain the idea of using him as a middle-order specialist and kept playing him as a pace-hitter in death overs. However, his recent heroics will surely lure the defending champions to try the same next season.
Fortunately, RCB can afford to use him in the middle order since Jitesh Sharma and Romario Shepherd are certified pace-hitters who can bat below David. So, the middle and lower middle order, unless a major injury, is settled. David’s recent upgrade only makes the team more flexible.
While RCB have a set batting side, the bowling department still requires a few additions. On paper, they have options, but a closer look shows caveats. The two weak options are Yash Dayal and Suyash Sharma at the moment.
Obviously, both were fabulous last season and did their part, but things have changed a bit. With Yash Dayal, there’s a legal case attached, and his availability for the next season is uncertain. If he is not allowed to play, RCB will need to find a suitable Indian pacer, preferably a left-armer.
Meanwhile, Suyash Sharma hasn’t shown enough progress and doesn’t really bring wicket-taking ability. They have Krunal Pandya, who did the heavy lifting in terms of making inroads last season, but RCB should still want another decent option. Maybe Suyash will continue to be the first-choice wrist-spinner, but another option is a must, especially since they have parted ways with Mohit Rathee.
Ravi Bishnoi should be their priority, as he brings previous experience and a genuine wicket-taking ability, despite recent regression. RCB showed their liking towards experienced players in the last auction, even if they weren’t at their peak, such as Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Lungi Ngidi. So, Bishnoi in RCB can’t be ruled out, especially since they have a couple of slots for spinners.
Now, Bishnoi will be among the rare proven leg spinners in the IPL 2026 auction, and multiple teams will target him. So, his price will be high, and that’s where RCB can compromise with the batting backups by using David optimally as a middle-order batter. That budget can be spent on getting Bishnoi, along with a decent to good pacer.
Bishnoi became predictable with his variations and pace in the previous season. However, RCB can still target him because they know how to maximise a player’s true potential, as visible by Suyash’s success last season. Even as a backup, Bishnoi will be more than useful and can come into play on certain tracks suiting slow bowlers.
For the pace bowling department, RCB’s target can be one of Akash Madhwal, Kuldeep Sen, Simarjeet Singh, and Chetan Sakariya. Sakariya’s name mostly comes here because he is among the rare left-arm pacers with some previous IPL experience. He has his limitations and can be best used with the new ball, where RCB already have a few options available.
Meanwhile, Madhwal brings ample new and old ball value, someone who can extract movement and brings encouraging control over his yorkers. The main reason to get him will be doubts around Josh Hazlewood’s availability. He might miss some part or even the full IPL 2026 after recent injury issues, and RCB must prepare for the worst-case scenario.
Meanwhile, Kuldeep Sen and Simarjeet Singh can be acquired for the enforcer role, as they bring pace and certain attributes. Sen brings hit-the-deck value, someone who can bowl a heavy ball and has done well in IPL before. Meanwhile, Simarjeet is an out-and-out pacer whose natural lengths are shorter and has improved massively in recent times, bringing high wicket-taking value in the powerplay and middle overs.
Obviously, Hazlewood is irreplaceable, and RCB have Nuwan Thushara, but more Indian options will help. They can’t trust Bhuvneshwar Kumar either since he doesn’t play enough competitive games at this level now and was vulnerable even last season. So, one or even two of the mentioned pacers will help them get more options to rotate and work with, making them more flexible as a bowling unit.
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