RCB Retention List For IPL 2025: All Players Retained by Royal Challengers Bengaluru Ahead of IPL Mega Auction

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) has decided to make only three or four Indian retentions ahead of the IPL 2025 Mega Auction, which is likely to be held in Saudi Arabia in the last week of November.

The official list will be released around 5 PM IST on Thursday (October 31), but it is an open secret that the Royal Challengers has retained the services of their icon player Virat Kohli as the top retention.

RCB Retained player list before IPL 2025 Mega Auction

Kohli has been part of RCB since the first-ever edition in 2008 after the franchise drafted him in as part of the Under-19 signings. The star batter, who captain India U19 in the World Cup that year, was roped in for a reported Rs 12 Lakh.

The 35-year-old star Indian batter has been retained ahead of every auction, including the mega auctions in 2011, 2014, 2018 and 2022. While his retention price increased over the years, reaching Rs 17 Crore as maximum, the former RCB skipper took a pay cut to be retained ahead of 2022 Mega Auction.

Kohli was RCB's top retention at Rs 15 Crore before the last mega auction. The star batter, who is reportedly keen on taking over captaincy again, is likely to be retained for Rs 18 Crore plus before the upcoming 2025 big auction.

Kohli is the only sure shot retention for the Bengaluru-based side with two other Indian players likely to join him as capped retention and another who has received a call up to the South Africa T20I series squad could be the lone uncapped retention.

The next capped retentions for the Challengers is batter Rajat Patidar. This is the first time retention for Patidar, who was roped in by RCB as a replacement player a few seasons ago.

With Patidar and Kohli's retentions, the Bengaluru-based side heads into the auction with a remaining purse of Rs 88 Crore. RCB's purse was further deducted with retention of an uncapped player in Yash Dayal.

Dayal started his career redemption after being roped in by RCB for Rs 5 Crore in the IPL 2024 Auction. He is now being retained for the same price of Rs 5 Crore, leaving the franchise's remaining purse at Rs 83 Crore.

RCB finalized their retentions with just three, allowing them room to use 3 Right to Match cards on either Mohammed Siraj, Faf Du Plessis, Will Jacks or Glenn Maxwell with a bigger remaining purse at the auction. Here is a look at the full list of retained players of RCB: