In a surprising move, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have released their star player Glenn Maxwell during the IPL 2025 mega auction, held in Jeddah on Sunday, November 24. Maxwell, making a return to his former team, was bought by Punjab Kings for Rs 4.20 crore.
Despite having the option of a Right to Match (RTM) to bring Maxwell back, RCB decided not to use it, even though they had three RTM cards available. Instead, the franchise succeeded in acquiring ICC’s No. 1 T20I batter, Phil Salt. After a fierce bidding battle with KKR, RCB secured the England wicketkeeper-batter for Rs 11.50 crore.
RCB’s auction strategy appeared questionable, as they did not aggressively bid for several prominent players available in the auction pool. SunRisers Hyderabad was the first to raise their paddle for Maxwell, whose base price was set at Rs 2 crore.
A bidding war ensued between Chennai Super Kings and Punjab Kings, with the Australian all-rounder and IPL veteran eventually being sold for Rs 4.20 crore by Punjab Kings.
https://x.com/punjabkingsipl/status/1860684589892534483?s=46
“My journey with RCB is not finished yet”- Glenn Maxwell
This contradicted Maxwell’s earlier statements, as the all-rounder had recently shared how the franchise communicated with him and expressed his admiration for the way they managed the situation.
“I got a phone call from Mo Bobat and Andy Flower. I sat there on a zoom call, and they sort of explained to me the decision not to be retained. And, it was actually a really beautiful exit meeting, if that if that could be possible.”
“We ended up talking about the game for about half an hour and talking about their strategy and what they were looking to get to do, going forward. So, I was really happy with that,” said Maxwell on ESPNCricinfo’s Around the wicket show.
Glenn Maxwell acknowledged RCB’s plans for the upcoming season, stating that his journey with the team is not over. Despite a tough season with the bat, where he scored just 52 runs in nine innings, Maxwell impressed with the ball, taking six wickets.
Over four seasons with RCB, he scored 1266 runs and took 18 wickets, proving his worth after being bought for Rs 14.25 crore in the IPL 2021 auction.
Get the latest cricket news here, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram for more such updates.