KL Rahul began his IPL journey at RCB in 2013 before reuniting with the team in 2016, the year they reached the final.
India wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul opened up on rumours of his move to former franchise, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, after being released by Lucknow Super Giants, where he spent three seasons as a captain ahead of the mega auction for the 2025 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). These reports began earlier in the summer, after the conclusion of the 2024 season of the IPL, when a video from the LSG dugout went viral. Franchise owner Sanjiv Goenka was seen publicly scolding Rahul, the then-captain, following a 10-wicket loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad. The viral act subsequently sparked reports that all was not well inside the LSG dressing room.
KL Rahul was released by LSG ahead of IPL 2025 mega auction(AFP)
Although Goenka attempted to douse the fire after he invited Rahul for a private dinner – the latter even visited the owner’s office in Alipore, Kolkata, ahead of the retention announcement – rumours eventually peaked as LSG released their captain despite him having led them to two consecutive playoffs. Amid speculations over Rahul’s future at LSG, RCB, his former franchise, dropped a teaser when he was spotted batting alongside Virat Kohli in Bengaluru ahead of the first Test against New Zealand, sending fans into overdrive.
Speaking to Star Sports, Rahul said that he would love to go back to RCB, but admitted the surprise that IPL auction often tends to throw.
“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,” he said.
“Of course (Would you like to be back at RCB?) Bengaluru is home. People there know me as a local Kannada boy. Would be nice to go back there and get an opportunity. But, yeah, it’s an auction year, you can go anywhere,” he said.
Rahul began his IPL journey at RCB in 2013 before spending two years at Sunrisers Hyderabad. In 2016, he reunited with his former team, the year they reached the final. Rahul has since represented Punjab Kings and LSG, but has a chance to switch back to RCB for a third tenure when he goes under the hammer at the mega auction on November 24 and 25 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
‘Virat Kohli and I have talked about it few times’
The IPL final of 2016 still remains deeply embedded in the hearts of RCB players and fans. It was the closest Bengaluru came to the elusive trophy in the tournament’s 17-year-long history, only to end up losing to SRH in the final by eight runs.
“It’s long time ago, but it’s still fresh in my memories. I and Virat (Kohli) always talked about it a few times that 2016 is always a reminder that had one of us played a little longer, it would have been very different. It would have been a fairytale to be right at the bottom to win seven games to qualify and then win the final at home,” Rahul said.
