Reports: Liam Livingstone among 4 RCB players to be released

England all-rounder Liam Livingstone failed to live up to his reputation during Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) triumphant campaign in the 2025 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). It seems that he is set to bid farewell to the Rajat Patidar-led franchise and be available at the IPL 2026 mini-auction, which is reportedly scheduled to be held in Abu Dhabi on December 16.

According to Cricbuzz, veteran opening batter Mayank Agarwal and fast bowlers Blessing Muzarabani and Rasikh Dar are set to join Livingstone on the list of players RCB are going to release.

Livingstone was among the most expensive players for RCB in IPL 2025. He was roped in at the mega-auction for INR 8.75. However, he could only aggregate 112 runs from 10 matches at a paltry average of 16. With the ball, he bagged only a couple of wickets at an average of 38.

Meanwhile, Agarwal joined RCB towards the back-end of the tournament as an injury replacement for Devdutt Padikkal, who was ruled out due to a hamstring injury. The Karnataka captain scored 95 runs in four matches at an average of 31.67 and a strike rate of 148.44. He made a crucial 24 runs off 18 balls in the summit clash against the Punjab Kings.

Muzarabani, on the other hand, joined RCB as a temporary replacement for Lungi Ngidi. The Zimbabwean pacer was signed for INR 75 lakh to help bolster the RCB bowling attack for the IPL 2025 playoffs. He was available for selection from the final league game. However, he wasn't handed his IPL debut.

Rasikh Salam was picked by RCB for INR 6 crore at the mega-auction. He was expected to play a key role after an impressive season with Delhi Capitals in 2024, bagging nine wickets in eight games. However, he couldn't get a game.

The retention deadline is set for Saturday, November 15, at 3 PM IST, by which all teams must submit their retained and released player lists.