'Communication has not happened yet' - Andy Flower keeps Virat Kohli's potential RCB captaincy return under shadows

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) retained Virat Kohli, Yash Dayal and Rajat Patidar ahead of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 mega auction. This meant that they let go of Faf du Plessis, their captain from IPL 2022 to 2024. It was expected that the franchise will rope in the Proteas back, but they did not even use the RTM card as the cricketer was bought by Delhi Capitals for INR 2 crore.

Speculations were on all-time high that Kohli, who relinquished RCB captaincy in 2022, will be back as the leader. While there was no official confirmation from the franchise even after the mega auction, but RCB’s Director of Cricket, Mo Bobat had stated that there was no decision taken on that matter. Subsequently, Head Coach Andy Flower conveyed the same message and said that the ‘communication has not happened yet’.

"Well, you're going to have to wait for the outcome. It's a new era that we are going into, the start of a three-year cycle, and I'm sure the anticipation will be good for you. You can ask me as often as you like, but that communication has not happened yet," said Flower to SportsTak.

Also Read: Kohli should have been banned for Konstas episode: Harmison

RCB entered the auction with a hefty purse and shopped 19 players. They shed the most money on Australia pacer, Josh Hazlewood (INR 12 crore) and also acquired the services of big hitter, Phil Salt (INR 12 crore). To further bolster their bowling attack, they signed the veteran Bhuvneshwar Kumar (INR 10.75 crore), while Australia’s fiery batter, Tim David (INR 3 crore) also joined the fray.

RCB IPL 2025 Squad:

Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Yash Dayal, Liam Livingstone, Phil Salt, Jitesh Sharma, Josh Hazlewood, Rasikh Dar, Suyash Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Swapnil Singh, Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Nuwan Thushara, Manoj Bhandage, Jacob Bethell, Devdutt Padikkal, Swastik Chhikara, Lungi Ngidi, Abhinandan Singh, Mohit Rathee