'Was a great franchise to play for' - Glenn Maxwell praises RCB team culture post ‘beautiful’ exit

Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) Director of Cricket, Mo Bobat, has opened up on a new perspective on team management, specifying paying attention to both beginnings and endings in building a successful franchise. This approach is currently being put to the test as RCB is looking to make a new team for the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 mega-auction.

The franchise has opted to retain just three players in the form of, Virat Kohli for INR 21 crore, Rajat Patidar for INR 11 crore, and uncapped pacer Yash Dayal for INR 5 crore. Bobat mentioned that induction and exits are important for cultural connections, particularly when a team is involved.

"It is important to pay attention to the start and the end of the journey. Induction and exit are key for cultural connection. People think its just about the middle when you're all together, but that's the easier bit," Mo Bobat said in a statement.

Also Read: Glenn Maxwell hails RCB's gesture of Andy Flower and Mo Bobat for exiting team

It was actually a really beautiful exit meeting: Glenn Maxwell

Though the side opted to retain only three players, they let go of some big names including, Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell, Mohammed Siraj, Will Jacks, Anuj Rawat, and Akash Deep. Bobat's philosophy in action was brilliantly handled with Maxwell's departure. 

Though the Australian scored just 52 runs from nine innings in the previous edition, the exit process was handled with remarkable professionalism. Maxwell himself spoke about how the coach and Director of Cricket spoke to him ahead of the retention announcement and revealed why he wasn't picked. 

“I got a phone call from Mo Bobat and Andy Flower. I sat there on a zoom call, and they sort of explained to me the decision not to be retained. And, it was actually a really beautiful exit meeting, if that if that could be possible. We ended up talking about the game for about half an hour and talking about their strategy and what they were looking to get to do, going forward. So, I was really happy with that,” said Maxwell on ESPNCricinfo’s Around the Wicket show.

Looking ahead, the 2016 finalists hold a substantial purse of INR 83 crore for the upcoming mega-auction, along with three Right to Match (RTM) cards. According to some reports the side are looking to go all out in the auction and have some big buys to fill their 25-member squad.