Ahead of the IPL 2026 mini-auction, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) released star English all-rounder Liam Livingstone, who had a decent performance in the last edition of the Indian Premier League. Livingstone, known for his explosive batting and spin bowling, was also part of RCB’s IPL 2025 title-winning squad.
Despite being a powerful hitter, Livingstone had an average performance in the IPL 2025. He scored around 112 runs in eight innings with a strike rate of 133.33 and was able to score only one half-century. Royal Challengers Bengaluru heavily invested in him during the last mega-auction.
Livingstone was bought for a massive Rs. 8.75 crore in the IPL 2025 mega-auction, but the performances were far below expectations. RCB was hoping that he would be a key middle-order player along with Tim David, but the returns were not enough for the money the franchise invested on him.
Anil Kumble on the Release of Liam Livingstone:
As per the former RCB mentor Anil Kumble, one of the biggest reasons for releasing Liam Livingstone was his hefty price tag. The price tag of Rs. 8.75 crore was one of RCB’s most expensive overseas players in the squad.
Kumble stated that RCB needed more balance in their purse to rebuild the squad for the upcoming IPL 2026. Therefore, the management would have decided to release Liam Livingstone since the price and the performance are not justifying.
Livingstone isn’t part of England’s squad:
A surprising but important reason was Livingstone’s absence from England’s recent squads. Kumble mentioned that his lack of match practice and international selection created uncertainty for RCB.
If a player is not consistently playing international cricket or domestic tournaments, then it raises concern over form and fitness.
Livingstone’s Overall IPL Career so far:
Liam Livingstone has quite good numbers despite having a bad performance in recent times. He has played around 49 IPL matches and scored 1,051 runs with a decent strike rate of 158.76.
Livingstone has also taken 13 wickets, which makes him a handy all-rounder who can bowl both leg-spin and off-spin. RCB might bring back Livingstone in the squad from the IPL 2026 mini-auction, but at a lower price tag.
RCB Released Players 2026:
Liam Livingstone, Mayank Agarwal, Swastik Chikara, Manoj Bhandage, Lungi Ngidi, Blessing Muzarabani, Mohit Rathee
RCB Retained Players 2026:
Rajat Patidar (Captain), Virat Kohli, Tim David, Devdutt Padikkal, Phil Salt, Jitesh Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Swapnil Singh, Romario Shepherd, Jacob Bethell, Rasikh Salam, Abhinandan Singh, Josh Hazlewood, Yash Dayal, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Nuwan Thushara, Suyash Sharma.
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