In 2025, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) finally secured their first Indian Premier League (IPL) title after an 18-year wait. This win occurred in the first season of the new three-year cycle after the mega auction.

RCB formed a new core, with notable signings like Josh Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Phil Salt, while deciding to part ways with Glenn Maxwell and Mohammed Siraj.

In an interview with Cricbuzz, RCB’s director of cricket, Mo Bobat, shared the rationale behind not retaining Siraj. “We thought about him for a long time,” he confessed.

Siraj, who was with RCB for seven seasons and took 99 wickets in 102 matches, was not retained by the team ahead of the mega auction. “Indian international bowlers are hard to come by. We considered all possibilities with Siraj, including whether to retain him, release him, or use the Right to Match. It was not an easy decision,” Bobat explained.

In the end, RCB secured Hazlewood for Rs 12.50 crore and Bhuvneshwar for Rs 10.75 crore, while Siraj moved to the Gujarat Titans for Rs 12.25 crore. Bobat emphasised that Bhuvneshwar’s ability to perform well with both the new ball and during the death overs played a key role in their decision. “We were keen to try and get Bhuvi. Keeping Siraj would have made that difficult. There is never just one reason, as several factors come into play,” he said.

Siraj had a commendable season with Gujarat, finishing with 16 wickets from 15 matches, while Bhuvneshwar took 17 wickets and played a key role in RCB’s title victory. Hazlewood, however, was the standout performer, claiming 22 wickets in 12 matches at an economy rate of less than nine. Bobat also revealed that Australian all-rounder Cameron Green was not retained only because of injury. “Had he been fit, we would almost certainly have retained him,” he confirmed.