IPL 2026: Royal Challengers Bengaluru's Full Squad, Retained & Released Players, Auction Buys

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) has finalized its team for the 2026 IPL season. The franchise opted to keep 17 players from its previous roster, entering the mini-auction with a budget of Rs 16.40 crore for new acquisitions.

Several players were released to create that budget, including England all-rounder Liam Livingstone, South Africa's fast bowler Lungi Ngidi, and Indian players Manoj Bhandage, Mayank Agarwal, Mohit Rathee, and Sachin Baby.

At the start of the auction day, RCB had the fourth-smallest purse among all teams. Only Mumbai Indians (Rs 2.75 crore), Punjab Kings (Rs 11.50 crore), and Rajasthan Royals (Rs 16.05 crore) had less to spend.

Fresh off their title victory last season, RCB faces the challenge of defending their championship. While they've largely stuck with the winning combination, concerns remain about the depth of their fast bowling options. Josh Hazlewood's injury and workload management are potential issues, and Yash Dayal has not played any professional cricket since the last IPL season.

**RCB's New Players from the IPL 2026 Mini-Auction:**

• Venkatesh Iyer (India): Rs 7 crore
• Mangesh Yadav (India): Rs 5.20 crore
• Jacob Duffy (New Zealand): Rs 2 crore
• Jordan Cox (England): Rs 75 lakh
• Satwik Deswal (India): Rs 30 lakh
• Vihaan Malhotra (India): Rs 30 lakh
• Kanishk Chouhan (India): Rs 30 lakh

**RCB Retained Players:**

Abhinandan Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Devdutt Padikkal, Jacob Bethell, Jitesh Sharma, Josh Hazlewood, Krunal Pandya, Nuwan Thushara, Phil Salt, Rajat Patidar (Captain), Rasikh Dar, Romario Shepherd, Suyash Sharma, Swapnil Singh, Tim David, Virat Kohli, Yash Dayal