 "Virat Kohli could be back as Royal Challengers Bengaluru captain after Shubman Gill deal fails: Report")
Virat Kohli could be back as the captain for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season if media reports are to be believed. A report in the Times of India says that RCB team management and Kohli have already had a word on the captaincy role and the former skipper is ready to be back in control of things.
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Faf du Plessis has captained the RCB team since 2022, but the South African great turned 40 earlier this year which is why the franchise is now looking for a change. The report also added that RCB wanted Shubman Gill but negotiations didn’t work out and they can also go behind Rishabh Pant in the mega auction if the wicketkeeper-batter is available.
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Nonetheless, Kohli currently seems like the favourite for now to become the next RCB captain.
With the mega auction expected to take place at the end of November, having a captain in place will help the franchise decide its strategies and pick the players.
‘I will continue to be an RCB player’
Kohli captained RCB between 2013 and 2021 and guided them to the final in 2016 when they lost to Sunrisers Hyderabad.
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He quit as RCB captain after the 2021 season but said that he would only play for the Bengaluru franchise.
“I will continue to be an RCB player till I play my last game in the IPL. But it’s been a great journey of nine years of joy, frustration, moments of happiness and sadness, and I just want to thank all of you from the bottom of my heart for supporting me and believing in me relentlessly and unconditionally.
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“And I will continue to be committed to play for this franchise as I said till the last day of me playing IPL… for you guys, for the fans, because of what you’ve done for me and how you’ve made me feel over the last so many years that is going to stay with me for the rest of my life,” Kohli had said after leaving captaincy.
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