Kumble said in a conversation with Jio Hotstar, “Livingstone’s release was a tough call. He had an excellent season for Punjab Kings in 2022. He has the power to turn a match in a few overs. His batting power, bowling both leg-spin and off-spin, along with excellent fielding make him a complete package.”

At the same time, Kumble also admitted that their season in 2025 was not exactly what was expected for RCB. There were no runs, no wickets, and on top of that, he did not even get a place in the England team. In such a situation, such a huge price tag also became an important reason, which pushed the franchise towards its release. However, Kumble also said that despite this, Livingstone is a match-winner and there is full hope of strong bidding for him in the 2026 auction.

What does RCB need now?

According to Kumble, RCB’s core team is strong for 2026, but it is important to add depth to the fast bowling department. He said, in 2025, most of the burden was on the shoulders of Josh Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Yash Dayal. Therefore, RCB needs to include a good foreign fast bowler and a reliable Indian fast bowler in the auction.

When and where will the auction take place?

Let us tell you, IPL 2026 auction is going to be held on 16 December 2025 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. RCB is left with a purse amount of around Rs 16 crore. In such a situation, it will be interesting to see how the team balances its team with this amount and on which players it bets big.