Mo Bobat, Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) Director of Cricket, finally revealed the thought process that went behind releasing Mohammed Siraj prior to the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season. Fans of the franchise were left surprised when the franchise decided not to retain the ace speedster Mohammed Siraj.
Eventually, Mohammed Siraj was picked up by the Gujarat Titans in the mega auction in Saudi Arabia. Months after winning the tournament, RCB’s Mo Bobat revealed that the franchise had its eyes set firmly on Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and this was the main reason behind letting go of Mohammed Siraj.
Mohammed Siraj played 87 matches for the franchise between 2018 and 2024. He came into his own for the team after the 2021 edition of the IPL. However, RCB decided to let go of Siraj and some other high-profile names before the IPL 2025 auction.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) ended 18 years of wait to clinch the Indian Premier League (IPL) title for the first time in its history in 2025. The success came in the first season of the latest three-year cycle of the IPL, following the mega auction.
While RCB made significant purchases like pacers Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar and overseas opener Phil Salt in the auction, they also let go of household names like all-rounder Glenn Maxwell and fan-favourite pacer Mohammed Siraj. Now, however, RCB’s director of cricket Mo Bobat has revealed the thought process behind letting Siraj go.
Mo Badat reveals the reason behind not retaining Mohammed Siraj
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) director of cricket Mo Bobat recently explained the franchise’s decision not to retain Mohammed Siraj ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction. Since 2017, Siraj had been a key member of the Bengaluru-based team, but the management chose to release him before the auction. Instead, RCB picked Bhuvneshwar Kumar to spearhead their pace attack for the 18th edition of the prestigious tournament.
Mohammed Siraj spent seven years at RCB, picking up 99 wickets across 102 matches for the franchise. However, the 31-year-old wasn’t retained ahead of IPL 2025.
“Indian international bowlers aren’t that easy to get. We spent a lot of time weighing up whether we wanted to retain him, release him, would we consider trying to go back for him at the auction, is he a Right To Match? We discussed every eventuality with him,” Bobat revealed.
RCB ultimately got Australian speedster Hazlewood for Rs 12.50 crore and veteran Indian pacer Bhuvneshwar for Rs 10.75 crore. Siraj ended up going to Gujarat Titans (GT) for Rs 12.25 crore.
Bobat explained that it was the versatility of Bhuvneshwar that saw RCB prefer him over Siraj.
“We were keen to try and get Bhuvi (for two ends of the innings) and we felt like hanging on to Siraj would make it difficult to get Bhuvi, so that was something that we thought about as well. A number of things come into it, it’s never just one reason,” Bobat reasoned.
At the IPL 2025 mega auction, RCB invested 10.75 crore INR to secure Bhuvneshwar Kumar. The Meerut speedster impressed with 17 wickets in 14 matches at an average of 28.41.
Meanwhile, after being released by RCB, Siraj was acquired by the Gujarat Titans (GT), led by Shubman Gill, for 12.25 crore INR in the same auction. Siraj delivered strong performances throughout the IPL 2025 season, taking 16 wickets in 15 matches, with a best bowling figure of 4/17. RCB also parted ways with their former captain Faf du Plessis before the mega auction.
Du Plessis was bought by Delhi Capitals (DC) during the auction, and RCB appointed Rajat Patidar as the new captain. Bobat shared that Virat Kohli, the former skipper and star batter, was fully supportive of this decision and was ready to assist Patidar as he adjusted to the new role.
Mohammed Siraj had an excellent start to the season, but ultimately ended up with 16 wickets in 15 matches in IPL 2025. Bhuvneshwar, on the other hand, picked up 17 wickets by the end, playing a crucial role in RCB’s title success. Hazlewood was arguably the best bowler of the tournament, picking up 22 wickets in just 12 matches at an economy rate of under 9.
On the other hand, Mohammed Siraj returned with 16 wickets in the IPL 2025 season for the Gujarat Titans. The Shubman Gill-led side made it to the playoffs. However, the franchise stumbled against the Mumbai Indians in the Eliminator.
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