“We spent the longest time deliberating” - RCB director’s massive statement on releasing Team India star ahead of IPL 2025 auction

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) director Mo Bobat admitted that the decision to release pacer Mohammed Siraj ahead of the IPL 2025 auction was the most challenging. After finishing a 17th consecutive trophyless season last year, the franchise decided on a massive overhaul, retaining only Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, and Yash Dayal.

Siraj had been with RCB for seven seasons, from 2018 to 2024, during which he picked up 83 out of his 109 IPL wickets. The franchise did not bid for the seamer in the 2025 auction, as he was eventually picked up by the Gujarat Titans (GT).

Talking about the decision to release Siraj in an interview with Cricbuzz, Bobat said:

"He's (Siraj) probably the player that we spent the longest deliberating over. Indian international bowlers aren't that easy to get. We spent a lot of time weighing up whether we wanted to retain him, release him, would we consider trying to go back for him at the auction, is he a Right To Match? We discussed every eventuality with him. But both were tricky decisions and for various reasons, we obviously decided to move on from those guys and try something different.

He added:

"We were keen to try and get Bhuvi [for two ends of the innings] and we felt like hanging on to Siraj would make it difficult to get Bhuvi, so that was something that we thought about as well. A number of things come into it, it's never just one reason."

While GT acquired Siraj for ₹12.25 crores, RCB signed Bhuvneshwar Kumar for ₹10.75 crores.

"The moment we recruited Phil Salt, we had filled a slot" - Mo Bobat on the incident with MI during 2025 IPL auction

Mo Bobat cleared the air around the incident with the Mumbai Indians (MI) during the bidding for England batter Will Jacks in the IPL 2025 auction. Despite having two Right-To-Match (RTM) options available, RCB chose not to use one for Jacks at ₹5.25 crores.

It meant that the 26-year-old went to MI, resulting in Akash Ambani walking to the RCB table and thanking them.

"My understanding of what happened was they were probably just expecting that we would Right To Match. As much as we really liked Will, and were keen on having him back, the moment we recruited Phil Salt, we had filled a slot. And it didn't make sense to stockpile talent when you can't roll for it. So the benefit we got off Salt was great for us, but the downside was it meant that we couldn't bring Jacksy back, which is a real shame," said Bobat.

Jacks played for RCB in his maiden IPL season in 2024, scoring 230 runs in only eight games at an average of almost 33 and a strike rate of over 175. He struggled to produce similar results for MI in IPL 2025, averaging only 23.30 at a strike rate of 135.46 in 13 outings.