LSG finished seventh in the table while GT reached the playoffs
Rajasthan Royals can attest to the fact that Jos Buttler’s presence in any T20 side is an asset. When they let the former England white-ball captain go in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 auction, they had to know that something would go wrong in the season.
Their form imploded in spectacular fashion as they finished second form bottom in the points table with only just four wins from 14 matches. The worst part of their campaign was bottling four chases despite staring at a win until the last over. They messed up the final over against Delhi Giants, Lucknow Super Giants, Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Kolkata Knight Riders all while having enough batters and balls to get to the target.
These were the occasions when they dearly missed Buttler, who time and again was the instigator and finisher in many chases for seven seasons. While Rajasthan were struggling for wins, Gujarat Titans remained in the top two for the majority of the league stage, thanks to a massive contribution from Buttler.
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Despite moving into middle-order, Buttler looked sharp as ever, remaining not out in four of 13 innings he played in the season, amassing 538 runs at a strike rate of 163 and an average of 60. As the playoffs drew closer, however, GT’s performances dimmed down and they slipped to third in the table and were then eliminated by Mumbai Indians in the Eliminator, when Buttler had to leave due to international commitments.
GT now very well that releasing an asset like Buttler in to the IPL 2026 auction is riskier than paying a hefty sum to retain him. But opponents Lucknow Super Giants seem to have set their eyes on signing the T20 World Cup winning captain, as their SA20 sister franchise Durban Super Giants have bought him as their pre-season signing for the 2025-26 season.
Buttler already plays for Manchester Originals who will be now called Manchester Super Giants from The Hundred 2025 after RPSG Sports Private Limited bought a majority stake in the franchise.
Buttler’s latest statement after being signed by DSG, further hinted at the Sanjiv Goenka co-owned group aiming to secure his services for IPL as well.
“I had a couple of good messages with Doctor Goenka – a quick phone call as well which was nice, I think, the thing that came across is passion, he wants to give everything, so excited for my first year – owns the Hundred franchise as well, so there is a continuity and building the relationship which is very important so it’s place to be a player,” Buttler told Durban Super Giants in a video call on Sunday.
The chances of LSG pulling it off through trade look slim, as they have only two options for a trade with GT – captain Rishabh Pant and star performer Nicholas Pooran.
It will be interesting to see if Buttler asks for a release before the IPL 2026 retentions are announced.
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