IPL 2022: 4 players Royal Challengers Bangalore might retain ahead of mega auction

For RCB, the IPL 2021 was nothing short of pure bliss. For the first time after many seasons, the franchise made back-to-back to the playoffs and was considered a strong contender. The signing of Glenn Maxwell also brought together a new vitality to the team and their perpetual death bowling woes finally got ceased. 

Even the form of their premier leg spinner Yuzi Chahal was top-notch in the second leg. Perhaps barring their frail lower middle-order, the team ticked all boxes and was perceived as a well-oiled machine.

However, the mega auction of IPL 2022 now fully changes the game as the franchise will eventually have to retain its four best cogs. Also apart from their four core retentions, the management has to indulge in a quest for selecting a new captain.

Here are four key players that RCB might retain before the mega auction:

1. Virat Kohli

When you have the IPL’s highest run-scorer then there’s retention for that individual. The former captain will undoubtedly become the first player to get penciled in the retention list. Also, since the inaugural IPL season, Virat Kohli has only played for the red army and perhaps is the crux of the team’s overall brand value.

Overall as a player, Virat also hasn’t severely malfunctioned in the recent seasons. Since IPL 2016, only once the cricketer has endured a reasonable IPL season (308 runs in IPL 2017) otherwise the former skipper’s batting is a 400-run bank guarantee. Throughout while playing for RCB, Virat Kohli has played a total of 207 matches and has scored 6283 runs at a commendable average of 37.39.

All in all, now the captaincy resignation is also perceived to be very fruitful for Kohli as a batsman. In the next IPL edition, King Kohli can freely express himself and possibly might even rediscover a similar patch of IPL 2016. Hence, without an iota of doubt, the Indian skipper will remain intact with the red army.

2. AB de Villiers

When you have AB de Villers then there’s barely any ecstasy past him. The current era’s best white-ball batter has been the heartbeat of the franchise and overall is only second to the former skipper in terms of numbers. Perhaps since IPL 2011, De Villiers has been the lone stallion in the red army’s middle-order valiantly winning oodles of games time and again. In fact, after the cricketer’s controversial international retirement, only RCB seems to be his pleasant home for continuing to play cricket.

Overall as a decade-old RCB player, ABD has played a total of 156 games and has scored 4491 runs at an average of 40.64. The South African is also the sixth-highest run-scorer of the tournament and is only second to David Warner as an overseas top scorer. Also just like Virat Kohli, the 37-year old constantly can stack over 400 plus runs per season. 

All in all, in the overseas retention slot, definitely ABD will be the first name to get penned for the IPL 2022. His retention also provides a potential captaincy option in case if the franchise fails to pick a strong leader in the mega auction. 

3. Glenn Maxwell

To acquire Glenn Maxwell’s volcanic services, the red army had paid a very big premium in IPL 2021. The Aussie all-rounder eventually received a salary hike of 168% from its first-ever IPL remuneration despite enduring a severe malfunction in IPL 2020. However, when the tournament started, Maxwell left no stone unturned to emerge as the biggest match-winner of the red-army in IPL 2021.

The cricketer amassed a total of 513 runs at an average of 42.75 along with a fierce strike rate of 144.10 from 15 games. Maxwell outclassed everyone in IPL 2021 by scoring more than 350-plus runs at 9.25 an over significantly when the average scoring rate including the extras was 7.49 during the league stages. Perhaps such kind of prowess also enabled him to win six out of the seven games for RCB at the slow, low-scoring venues of Chennai, Sharjah and Dubai. Besides all this, the 33-year old also contributed with the ball along with covering RCB’s deficiencies in the lower middle-order.

Now when someone like Maxwell jolts such electrifying performances then it almost becomes inevitable to never discard him. Overall, his retention with ABD and Virat also successfully then preserves the main engine of RCB’s batting, which will simply allow the management to further build a batting force for the next cycle. Hence, it looks very unlikely that this Aussie all-rounder will further play for any other franchise than RCB.

4. Yuzvendra Chahal

Prudently, to pick their fourth Indian player for retentions, RCB has an impressive set of options. The management can either preserve the likes of young Devdutt Padikkal, who in the future can become a star player, or can retain one from the duo of Harshal Patel and Mohammad Siraj, who ceased their death bowling woes. Or else the franchise can also stick with their premier leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal.

Perhaps every individual’s choices here may vary but the red-army can eventually settle with their best scalper. Since IPL 2014, Yuzi has emerged to be the RCB’s top highest wicket-taker and overall has bagged 139 wickets in the tournament. Also, season after season, the leg-spinner continues to be part of the purple cap list irrespective of the conditions.

The 31-year old also has more wickets than the tournament’s premier bowler-Jasprit Bumrah and currently is also the ninth highest wicket-taker in the IPL’s history. Hence, one of the chief spinners of the IPL certainly deserves an extension for the upcoming cycle.