Top three franchises that will target KL Rahul in IPL 2025 Mega Auction

KL Rahul must be a frustrated man right now. Runs have dried up, while social media has become more like an enemy. Moreover, his place in the Indian team is hanging by a thread. On the IPL front, he has parted ways with Lucknow Super Giants in the Indian Premier League. Lucknow decided to release him ahead of the IPL 2025 Mega-Auction and the 32-year-old will now find his name in the auction pool.

KL Rahul led the Lucknow-based outfit for three seasons, since its inception. He was hailed for his leadership acumen in the first couple of seasons. LSG reached the eliminator clash in the 2022 and 2023 seasons of the Indian Premier League. However, Lucknow couldn’t live up to the expectations in 2024. They finished in seventh with seven wins and seven losses. However, one bad season last year should not have let both parties part ways with each other. 

He has been leading the IPL franchises for quite some time now and for a leader, nothing is, perhaps, more valuable than earning respect from his team. The episode with the LSG owner inside the stadium must have hurt him. In his recent interview with Star Sports, he mentioned that he is looking for a franchise that gives him the freedom to express himself. Besides, he also expressed his desire to go back to RCB.

Nevertheless, let’s take a look at three franchises that will target KL Rahul in the IPL 2025 Mega Auction: 

1. Royal Challengers Bangalore 

“I most enjoyed playing at RCB. It’s home. You get to spend a lot of time to spend at home. I know the Chinnaswamy really well, I have grown up playing there. So, yeah, I really enjoyed playing at RCB”, KL Rahul said in an interview with Star Sports. 

There is no denying that KL Rahul wishes to play for RCB and the franchise also looks quite interested in his services for next season. Virat Kohli’s outfit has only retained three players and, currently, has INR 83 crores in their kitty. They are likely to be involved in a bidding war for the former Lucknow skipper. 

Royal Challengers Bangalore had a pretty good season last season. They made it to the playoffs, finishing fourth with seven wins in 14 games. Their journey, however, ended in the Eliminator clash as they lost to Rajasthan Royals by 4 wickets. 

2. Punjab Kings 

Just like RCB, Punjab Kings have plenty of money in the bank. They only retained two players and, in fact, holds the biggest purse going into the auction. It is worth mentioning that KL Rahul enjoyed a great time with the bat during his stint with the Punjab Kings, previously Kings XI Punjab, in the Indian Premier League.

He was the highest run-getter for consecutive seasons, although he lacked support from other batters. KL Rahul spent four years with Punjab between 2018 and 2021. Additionally, he captained the side in 2020 and 2021 before parting ways. 

One shouldn’t be surprised if Punjab also join in the bidding war to acquire KL Rahul’s services. Punjab Kings had a forgettable season last season as they finished at second from the bottom. Out of 14 matches, they secured wins in just five games and lost nine. 

3. Delhi Capitals 

Earlier, Delhi Capitals had let go of Shreyas Iyer and now it’s Rishabh Pant. There aren’t a lot of Indian players in the auction who boast of leadership qualities and KL Rahul could be someone they might go after. 

Delhi Capitals have retained the likes of Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Tristan Stubbs, and Abhishek Porel. Some reports suggest that Axar Patel could be handed over the captaincy reigns, however, all that are still rumours and Delhi should be looking for a captaincy option at the auction. They have a purse of INR 76.25 crore and are definitely a contender to acquire KL Rahul’s services. 

Delhi Capitals finished their campaign at sixth spot last season, collecting seven wins and as many losses. They have brought in a completely new coaching staff and it will be interesting to see how they fare in the upcoming season.