Here are four players of Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) whose form could determine the team's IPL 2025 playoff chances.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will begin a new era under skipper Rajat Patidar and will hope to clinch their maiden Indian Premier League (IPL) title when the 2025 season gets underway on March 22. Like a few other franchises, Royal Challengers Bengaluru opted for a wholesale revamp at the IPL 2025 auction.
They retained just three players in Rajat Patidar, Virat Kohli and Yash Dayal. Some of RCB’s biggest buys include wicketkeeper-batter Phil Salt (INR 11.50 crore) and all-rounders Liam Livingstone (INR 8.75 crore) and Krunal Pandya (INR 5.75 crore). Batter Devdutt Padikkal (INR 2 crore) also returns to the franchise where he started his IPL career in 2020.
Which players’ forms will be crucial for Royal Challengers Bengaluru if they are to reach the playoffs and possibly win their maiden IPL title this year? Let’s take a look:
Devdutt Padikkal knows a thing or two about RCB, having played for the franchise in 2020 and 2021. In both of those seasons, he scored more than 400 runs and was a pivotal player at the top-order for RCB. The former Rajasthan Royals and Lucknow Super Giant player’s role will not be different from 2021 as he will be expected to fore those big runs again. Having said that, he hasn’t enjoyed the last couple of seasons in the IPL, aggregating just 299 runs from 18 matches.
Which is why RCB will hope that Padikkal, who scored 196 runs from three matches in Vijay Hazare Trophy, is at the top of his game in IPL 2025.
RCB failed to retain Will Jacks via Right-to-Match in IPL 2025 auction, but they have another Englishman in Phil Salt in their squad. Salt was one of RCB’s most expensive buys at the IPL auction and is coming off an impressive IPL 2024 with defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), scoring 435 runs from 12 matches.
RCB will hope Salt does something similar which could guide them to their first-ever IPL title.
Despite being a big part of the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) setup previously, Krunal Pandya has endured mediocre campaigns in the last couple of seasons. He has scored 321 runs and taken 15 wickets from 29 matches across the 2023 and 2024 IPL seasons.
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And while the numbers do not do much justice, his game-changing spells with the ball and finishing abilities with the bat are quite impressive. RCB will hope Krunal brings out his A game.
With no update yet on the injured pacer Josh Hazlewood, RCB will rely on Bhuvneshwar Kumar to lead the bowling attack. The attack consists of Yash Dayal too, but having an experienced seamer like Bhuvneshwar Kumar will add depth. Which is why the 35-year-old will be expected to deliver under pressure and can only afford minimal slip-ups.
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