"His price was too high" - Former RCB batter's take on star all-rounder being released ahead of IPL 2026 Auction

Former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) batter Mohammad Kaif reflected on star all-rounder Liam Livingstone's release ahead of the IPL 2026 auction. The defending champions released Livingstone as he failed to justify his price tag.

The English all-rounder was acquired by RCB for a handsome amount of ₹8.75 crore. However, he disappointed, scoring just 112 runs from eight innings at an average of 16 and a strike-rate of 133.33. With the ball, he bagged two wickets in five innings at an average of 38 and an economy of 8.44.

Kaif reckoned that West Indian all-rounder Romario Shepherd performed well for the team and leapfrogged Livingstone. While he expressed that Livingstone could have been retained, he also admitted that his price was too high.

"RCB will want an all-rounder in place of Livingstone. They will only go for 2-3 players and not more. If Romario Shepherd was not there, Livingstone would not have been released. Shepherd did well with both bat and ball. Livingstone does not have much of a role left. Livingstone could have been kept but his price was too high," he said on his YouTube channel.

RCB will head into the IPL 2026 auction with a purse of ₹16.4 crore. Having won the trophy in 2025, they will look to fine-tune and further strengthen their squad at the auction.

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Mohammad Kaif surprised at RCB releasing Swastik Chikara

Among RCB's releases was right-handed batter Swastik Chikara. He was acquired by the franchise for just ₹30 Lakh. However, he did not play a single match last season.

Mohammad Kaif was surprised that the franchise released Chikara. Kaif hailed him as a solid young batter and expressed that he should have been groomed if he was picked for his potential. However, he added that factors such as current form, his behavior, and attitude while training may have influenced the decision.

"I was surprised that they released Swastik Chikara. He is a very solid young batter. I think people see current form a lot but I have seen Chikara scoring double hundreds and hitting big sixes. Is his current form a reason to drop him? I think if you brought him on potential, then you need to groom a young player. Give him a year or two at least and make him ready. But we will never know what is the notion about a young player within the camp. Franchises see if they are working hard and training well in the nets as well as their behavior. But you must also know good parenting," he said.

Notably, Chikara was previously part of the Delhi Capitals (DC) set up but did not play a game for them either. Therefore, he is yet to make his debut in the IPL.