The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) ended yet another Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign without a trophy, with a four-wicket defeat to the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Elminator match on Monday. While the franchise have improved on consistency, something they have lacked over the years, to reach the playoffs in their last two seasons, the defeat meant Virat Kohli‘s decade-long captaincy era ended without a single title. 

With the mega auction coming up in a few months, the team will have an opportunity to reassess their strategies and plan for the future as they now have to chase that elusive IPL crown with Kohli as their skipper.

The auction will also lead to major reshuffling of the squad, with rumours already doing the rounds about a possible move for Punjab Kings skipper KL Rahul, who is reportedly keen to move on from the franchise.  

Meanwhile, former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir believes veterans like AB de Villiers, who has been a stalwart for the franchise since the league’s inception in 2008, can no longer be included in long-term plans and could be allowed to leave. 

Speaking on a ESPNcricinfo show, Gambhir was asked whether RCB will retain the likes of Glenn Maxwell and de Villiers. When asked if the franchise could let go of the South Africa batsman, Gambhir said, “Yes, because I think they will retain Glenn Maxwell since he is the future, and AB de Villiers is not.”

Gambhir, who led KKR to two IPL titles, also said that the team could choose to retain either one of Harshal Patel or Yuzvendra Chahal. He was also sure the franchise will want to retain the services of Kohli, the all-time leading runscorer in the IPL. 

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But he criticised Kohli for the timing of his announcement that he will step down as captain of the franchise, saying it possibly distracted tha players and derailed their campaign slightly. RCB were in fine form in the India-leg and Kohli should have kept his decision for after the tournament, Gambhir said. 

“I guess the timing wasn’t right. If he had to quit as captain, he could have done that even after the tournament. He was in this situation, where it wasn’t like RCB was not in a position to qualify. They were pretty much in so I believe that had he resigned after the tournament, it would have been better,” he said.