RCB set to bench Venkatesh Iyer in IPL 2026? Anil Kumble opines

India’s former captain Anil Kumble feels that Indian all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer will not be in the Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s playing XI during the starting phase of the tournament. According to him, Rajat Patidar’s RCB side would hardly want to make any changes to his winning combination in the initial phase of IPL. 

Last year, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) acquired him for 23.75 crore INR, but he didn’t perform as per KKR's expectations. During IPL 2025, he was able to score only 142 runs in 11 innings, including a fifty. His average was just 20.28 and a strike rate of 139.21. After this poor performance, the 3-time champion Kolkata Knight Riders released him ahead of the auction. During the auction, RCB acquired him for 7 crore INR. 

Former RCB skipper Anil Kumble noted that Venkatesh Iyer might struggle to secure a spot in the RCB playing XI during the IPL 2026 opening matches. He attributed this to the RCB management’s strong confidence in their settled, winning combination, suggesting that this belief may have been the reason RCB did not aggressively pursue an experienced spinner like Ravi Bishnoi at the auction.

"Venkatesh Iyer will not be in the playing XI at the start. You do not want to create doubt in a winning team. That is probably why they did not go after Ravi Bishnoi, so that Suyash Sharma does not feel threatened by a senior Indian spinner. They have done well to keep the core the same, back their players, and just have a few backups in case something goes wrong."

Following this, Sanjay Bangar also said that the all-rounder had "a lot of eyes on him since last season."

"He has been consistent, and you can see his confidence. Dinesh Karthik, the batting coach, and Malolan Rangarajan, who scouts talent for RCB, have a good option in him. Will he be in the playing eleven right away? There is some doubt, as this is a settled team. They wanted left-handers and got them. They can adjust Venkatesh in the eleven, as they did with Krunal Pandya last season. Krunal played well, so the lack of a top spinner was not felt. Suyash Sharma had a good season," he added.

During the auction, Iyer’s base price was 2 crore INR. Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) franchise owner Sanjeev Goenka first raised the paddle for him. Gujarat Titans (GT) joined the race. Following them, the Kolkata Knight Riders and defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru also entered the bidding race to pursue him. RCB finally won the bidding wars and signed him. 

Venkatesh Iyer has 1,468 runs at an average of 29.12, with a strike rate of over 137, a century, and 12 fifties in 56 innings in IPL. His best season was IPL 2023, when he scored 404 runs, including a century and 2 half-centuries. In 2024, he also scored 370 runs, with 4 fifties and made an important contribution in the KKR’s title victory this season.