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Virat Kohli would be a key player for RCB in IPL 2025 (Source:@CricCrazyJohns/X.com)
Royal Challengers Bengaluru are of the most high-profile teams in the IPL and their fan-following is second to none, despite not winning a single trophy. Virat Kohli is the face of the franchise, but RCB have been guilty of not choosing a balanced squad over the years, and it is something they have tried to address in the IPL 2025 auction.
The franchise did not go big for a single player and focussed more on the utility players, forming a formidable squad full of match-winners. However, cricket is a game of uncertainty and there are bound to be failures on the way, and some big RCB players have also failed to perform for their respective nations or in domestic cricket after the auction. Let's take a look at three of those names.
Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli has been the pillar of RCB's batting line-up over the years. He has eight centuries for RCB and has over 8000 runs which speaks a lot about his consistency. The man is a modern-day legend and has won India many matches too. However, his form since the last IPL has not been great for India, and it has been a huge talking point.
Kohli scored century on the first day of the mega auction, but since then he has scored just 21 runs in three innings and has looked short on confidence against a quality Australian attack. It has been just three innings, but apart from that century, Kohli has not done much in recent past and before the auction, he struggled against New Zealand as well.
These failures have come in the longest format, but Kohli's form in T20 World Cup was not great either, so it is a slight cause of worry for RCB fans.
Phil Salt
The swashbuckling opener is likely to partner Virat Kohli at the top of the order. He was brilliant in the last season for KKR and that fetched him good money in IPL 2025 auction. He has played five T10 matches which includes one on the second day of the auction, and apart from one knock of 43, he has three single digits scores to his name.
He is still a quality player and his failures have come in T10 which is quite a volatile format. His consistency though has taken a hit after last IPL, and RCB fans would be hoping that he delivers big performances and comes into the tournament with high confidence.
Jitesh Sharma
The powerful wicketkeeper batter has been bought by RCB to strengthen their middle order. He has the ability to get going from the ball one but has not been able to get big scores for a long time now. He had a poor IPL 2024 and after RCB bought him in the auction, his highest score is 38 in SMAT.
So, he has clearly underperformed in SMAT 2024 when all other international cricketers have done well and if the same form continues in IPL 2025, it would be a worry for RCB. Overall, he scored 135 runs in six innings in SMAT 2024 and the player of his stature is expected to score more in a domestic tournament.
