RCB Director of Cricket Mo Bobat reveals why they didn't use RTM card on Mohammed Siraj and Will Jacks at IPL 2025 mega auction

Mohammed Siraj was bought by the Gujarat Titans for INR 12.25 crores.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) entered the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 mega auction with one of the largest purses and three Right to Match (RTM) cards at their disposal. Unlike their usual strategy, the franchise had opted to let go of all the foreign players before the event.

RCB entered the mega auction retaining three Indian players – Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar and Yash Dayal. Fans had expected that the franchise will use the RTM options on big names like Mohammed Siraj, Will Jacks, Glenn Maxwell or Faf Du Plessis.

However, to everyone’s surprise, the three-time IPL runners-up used their RTM card on the uncapped Indian player Swapnil Singh.

Recently, RCB’s Director of Cricket, Mo Bobat, explained why the franchise chose not to use it on big names like Mohammed Siraj and Will Jacks.

RCB Director of Cricket Mo Bobat reveals why they didn’t use RTM card on Mohammed Siraj and Will Jacks at IPL 2025 mega auction

Speaking to ESPN Cricinfo, Mo Bobat has shed light on franchise’s plan with their RTM cards on international stars. He explained that the decision was not straightforward and involved multiple factors to align perfectly for the franchise to successfully execute their strategy.

He said, “Unfortunately it didn’t work out for us to get Siraj just because of our priorities, auction order and the spending pattern.”

He also explained the rationale behind not using the RTM card for Jacks.

Bobat said, “He (Jacks) was definitely someone we were thinking of right-to-matching, but if you wait as deep as he was coming up in the auction, having not filled a role, that is a risk, and given the way the spending pattern works out and given that we missed one or two of our targets, and we had probably a bit more money than we anticipated, you have to make decisions.“

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