Should RCB retain Faf du Plessis for three years? Team faces tough decision ahead of IPL retentions

Royal Challengers Bangalore are facing a crucial offseason as they aim to end their IPL title drought in the upcoming season. One of the first steps towards achieving this goal is selecting the right players to retain ahead of the mega auction. Despite a strong performance in the playoffs last season, RCB will need to address their consistency issues in order to compete for the championship. Virat Kohli emerged as a standout performer for the team once again, winning the Orange Cap with 741 runs in 15 matches. However, RCB struggled to find reliable support from their other batters, with only three players managing to exceed the 350-run mark. Faf du Plessis and Rajat Patidar were the only other players to make significant contributions with 438 and 395 runs respectively. Moving forward, RCB will need to build a more well-rounded batting lineup and address their reliability issues in order to make a serious title challenge next season. The upcoming retention decisions will be crucial in shaping the team's roster and setting the stage for a successful campaign.

The bowling unit also failed to put up collective efforts, and the lack of a quality spinner put them in trouble on several occasions.

The BCCI has not yet announced the number of players to be retained, but the franchises have already started brainstorming to make the tough calls.

Former India opener Aakash Chopra has suggested that RCB might release their skipper Faf du Plessis as the Proteas star is already 40-year-old and it would be a risky choice to retain him for three seasons.

"This is always a very interesting question. Tough question again as to who would you want to retain. Virat Kohli will be one you will retain. Can you retain Faf for three years? That is a big question. Do you want to retain Faf for three years? Not sure," Chopra said on his YouTube channel.

Chopra further named Cameron Green and Mohammed Siraj as the two other options for RCB to retain alongside Kohli.

"If I get a chance I will retain Cameron Green. I will retain Mohammed Siraj because I won't get too many Indian fast bowlers in the auction if I let him go as part of the retentions," Chopra elaborated.

Meanwhile, in case of more than three retaining options, Chopra said that RCB could go for Rajat Patidar. He strictly advised the franchise not to retain Glenn Maxwell and instead go for someone like Will Jacks, who smashed a century last season.

"Rajat Patidar maybe, if he can be retained slightly cheap, but that's about it. Too many names aren't there. I will release Maxi. I will say it's enough, that you are a very good player, you play very well, but it's okay. I want to look somewhere else. So I might leave Maxi. Will Jacks is not a bad choice. You can do that. Between Will Jacks and Glenn Maxwell, Will Jacks is much better. So that's a possibility, an outside chance. It depends on how many people you get a chance to retain," he replied.